New life, new problems
by CoccinelleMenthol
Summary: AU - Regina used the curse to get a completely new life. She is now Dr Mills, working at the Storybrooke hospital. She still adopted Henry and she is currently 'seeing' David but things get a little bit out of hand after one particular mistake. Evil Charming. Regina/Whale friendship. And a little bit of Gold, Emma, Henry and other characters thrown in there.
1. Chapter 1

Hi everyone, I'm new to writing for the OUAT fandom but I just had this idea that wouldn't leave me alone, so I just had to write it down. I'm a big Evil Regal and I want Regina to have her happy ending, no matter with whom. I kind of really like the Evil Charming people around here so I thought it could be with Charming.

However it won't happen right away, I have a few things planned out. Not everything so I'm always open to suggestions and critics. I'll try to update regularly but I'm quite busy with school and the French system being what it is, my finals aren't before mid-June so I'll probably be busy until then.

Anyway, I'll let you read. English is not my first language so I'm sorry for the mistakes, I hope there won't be too much. And don't forget to tell me what you think! :)

* * *

**10 weeks before-**

Regina awoke to the feeling of soft fingers tracing patterns along her bare back. She sleepily turned her head to see that it was David's fingers. He seemed pretty engrossed in what he was doing and didn't notice right away that she had awaken. She took the opportunity to study his features. He seemed content, happy. Prince Charming was sleeping with the Evil Queen, and he loved every bit of it. The thought made her shift a little with unease and the fingers on her back instantly stilled.

He knew that affectionate gestures made her the slightest bit uncomfortable, even if he still couldn't understand why. There was a lot he didn't understand about Regina actually. She was a complex woman and he probably would never figure her out entirely. So he was trying taking it slow, not pushing her too fast. It wasn't always easy maneuvering the multiple layers of this incredible woman but so far it had been worth it.

"Hi." He was nervous. She always made him nervous. He knew that if he said or did the wrong thing, she would instantly shy away and put her walls back up again. He wondered what could have happened to such an amazing woman to make her so afraid of intimacy.

A smile slowly made its way to her face. Truthfully, she could get used to waking up next to him. She hadn't planned it but it was nice. "Hi." She then closed her eyes, reveling in the feeling of the first rays of sunshine warming her skin. She buried her face in the pillow, returning to her previous position, and David's fingers resumed their lazy dance on her back. It was nice. Maybe a little bit too nice.

At first she had been weary. How could Charming buying her a drink make sense? He should have been hating her. Even a curse as strong as the one provided by the dark one himself shouldn't have been able to change that. But it had. David from Storybrooke had actually found the former queen to his liking. She had tried avoiding him in the beginning. And then it had been too tempting.

She had promised herself that it would just be something casual. He was handsome and she didn't mind sharing her bed with him from time to time. But now she was afraid that it was developing into something more. Something that made her feel guilty. And to be honest, something that was scaring the hell out of her.

When she had enacted the curse, she had wanted a new beginning. A new chance at life. She had wanted it to be as far away as possible from her life in the Enchanted Forest. She couldn't stand what she had become anymore. She was well aware that her sanity had been slowly breaking and that she was on the verge of losing it entirely. Sure, she could have continued down that path and fought hard for her revenge, having nothing to loose anymore, but there was still that tiny part of her that was refusing to completely give up on the person she could have been. The person that her young self wanted to be. And it was a far cry from the Evil Queen.

So, when finally the curse had been enacted, she had realized that it wasn't too late for that and had created a new life for herself. Here in Storybrooke she was Dr. Regina Mills and nobody, except for Rumplestiltskin, knew of her past. Nobody knew that she used to take lives instead of saving them. Nobody knew of her undying hatred of Snow White. And slowly she had come to terms with Snow breaking her promise. She no longer hated her for that. And it was what made falling for David so wrong. He was Snow's and he couldn't fall for the Evil Queen, no matter how changed she actually was.

But right now she couldn't do anything about it. She had always been selfish and that was one thing that she didn't achieve to change. When she was lying in his bed, his large hands roaming over her body, she couldn't push him away. She could only lay there and enjoy it.

They both reveled in it for a moment before David broke the silence. "I'm glad you came last night."

Regina turned around to face him. They were both laying on their sides, staring in the eyes of one another. "Well, Henry is away at camp for the weekend and I didn't want to spend the night alone."

"Still, I'm glad that you chose to come here of all places."

"Me too."

It wasn't much and it wasn't said with a lot of confidence but it was a lot coming from her, and David knew that enough to truly enjoy it. He suddenly caught the time from the corner of his eyes and groaned internally. He would have to ruin the moment.

Regina caught his expression and looked over her shoulder at what he was looking before looking back at him. "You have to leave for work, don't you?"

"Yeah, I was kind of hoping you would be the one running to the hospital and I wouldn't have to be the one breaking the moment."

"How considerate." She smirked.

"Don't get me wrong, I don't like you bailing on me to run to the hospital, but I have gotten used to it."

"It's my day off."

He dramatically smacked his hand over his face. "You finally have a day off, without work, without Henry, and I'm the one who has to work? Gosh I wish I could just blow it off and spend the day with you."

"Come on, you know you have dogs to save." She was teasing him, just like she always was when they were talking about their respective jobs, comparing 'patients' and all.

He glared at her. "Don't say it like that. I really do save dogs sometimes. I know it's not as glamorous as you saving human lives, but it's still something! People love dogs." He was pouting now and she couldn't help a chuckle leaving her lips.

"I'm just teasing, dear. Of course your job is important. And people _do_ love dogs." He gently pecked her lips and she smiled into it. He was really bringing out the best out of her. Thirty years ago she could never have imagined having such a conversation with Charming and now here she was, playfully bantering with him, lying naked in his bed. "And _glamorous_? That's how you see it?"

"Of course. How could you, looking painfully sexy in a lab coat, taking care of patients and all, be considered anything else but glamorous?"

"Well, that's definitely not how I feel when I haven't slept in days, between surgeries and taking care of Henry, my hair being a complete mess and my scrubs being all stained from a day of work."

"And even after all of that, everyone still thinks you're sexy. Trust me, I've noticed them staring."

"And you think that's because of the whole saving lives thing?"

"Oh no, that's only part of it. Another major one being that you are just incredibly beautiful." At that he couldn't help but plant a soft kiss on her jaw.

"Do go on." She whispered in her ear as he was still focused on kissing and nipping at her jaw.

"And very smart." He reached her chin. "And funny." He found her lips and pushed her on her back, positioning himself on top of her.

She let the kiss get a little deeper before placing both of her hands on his chest and pushing him slightly away. "You should go."

He took in her dilated pupils and slightly irregular breath and knew that if he didn't leave now he would never leave. She really was intoxicating. "Yeah, you're right, I should go." He pushed himself off of her quickly before he could change his mind and started rummaging for his clothes.

She sat up in bed and watched him doing so. She was actually a little bit disappointed at not being able to spend the day with him. It was rare for her to have a day off, and when she did she usually spent it with Henry. Not that she complained, Henry was everything to her and she wished she could spend a lot more time with him, but spending the day with David would have been nice too. Although maybe not the best idea ever, because things were bound to get more serious between them after that much time together.

But she brushed these thoughts away and focused on the here and now. She grabbed the sheets and self-consciously pulled them over her chest, not liking being the only naked one now. "I should probably get up too. Wouldn't want to get locked up in your apartment."

David was already at the door, putting on his second shoe and didn't put much thoughts in his answer before blurting it out. "Just take the spare key under the rug and lock the door up when you leave. You can keep the key. Love you." And he was out, leaving behind a wide-eyed Regina.

He realized what he had just said after closing the door. He instantly froze. _Way to go, David! How is that for not going too fast? You managed to give her the keys to your apartment, and to tell her that you love her. All of that in 10 incredibly stupid seconds!_ He could feel himself panicking. How could he have been so stupid? He blamed it on his lust-filled mind. That kiss had probably damaged his neurons.

He considered going back in but somehow was afraid of what he would see behind that door. Just for one day, he wanted to believe that what he had said wasn't a big deal. That he hadn't completely ruined their relationship by telling Regina something she wasn't ready to hear. So, he sighed and made his way to work. Maybe giving her some time to digest the information would actually be a good thing.

Meanwhile in the apartment Regina's mind had stopped working. It had gone blank before getting filled with thousands of questions. But more than everything else, guilt. She couldn't keep on lying to herself. She knew he meant everything he had said. And she knew that deep down she could reply just as easily. Snow's husband was in love with her, and she was in love with him.

But he wasn't really Snow's husband anymore, was it? And he never would be. The curse would never break, would it? Suddenly she had the slightest hope. Maybe it would all be okay. After all Mary Margaret here seemed happy and she would never be hurt in any way by Regina and David being in love.

Regina quickly jumped out of bed. She had to see Gold.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N : Thank you all for all the reviews, follows and favorites. It's always really really welcomed and I'm not used to writing for such an enthusiastic fandom! It really made me write that chapter way faster that I initially thought I would, especially since it was one that I needed to set up the story but didn't really want to write. I hope I did Gold justice and that this chapter makes some sense, because I had a really hard time finding how to write it exactly. I would love to know what you think so don't be shy and leave a review.

Enjoy! (And don't hate me too much for what's about to happen, I needed it to pursue the story).

* * *

**10 weeks before-**

Regina sat in her car for a few minutes in front of Gold's shop. She was looking down at her lap, fidgeting with the keys from David's apartment. They suddenly seemed very heavy in her hands. Maybe she shouldn't have taken them, maybe she should just have left them in his mailbox, or snucked them under his door, or even met him at the animal shelter to give them back to him. It was not as if she didn't have a choice. She could still pretend that this morning had never happened, and she knew David would never bring it up again.

But still she had taken the keys. Why? Was she really that naive Did she really think that she had a chance with him? She was still the Evil Queen after all. No matter what she would do to try redeeming herself, she still had to answer for her past. She couldn't forget all the suffering that she caused, all the deaths that she brought. It still haunted her at night.

And it didn't really matter that she was a doctor now. She could joke all she wanted about saving lives, but she would never save as many as she had broken. Especially not in a small town where most of the surgeries were benign and accidents almost never happened. Not that she wished that there was more, but she wished that she could _do_ more. Then maybe the guilt would go away. Maybe she would feel worthy of a happy ending with Prince Charming.

She sighed before putting the keys in her pocket and getting out of the car. She chased all her emotions away from her face and walked towards Gold's shop. She didn't bother with the closed sign and pushed the door open, surprised that it was actually unlocked. He was probably expecting her. It seemed that even in this land, he was always several steps ahead of everyone. She used to find it unnerving, now she was used to it.

There was a lot of things that she had gotten used to. It helped with her anger issues. Or at least, she liked to think it did. There was still a lot of things that would get her intempestive anger to make a reappearance. It was just more controlled now. Not the kind of anger that would make you curse an entire land to another realm, just the one that makes your blood boil.

The bell chimed in and Gold immediately appeared behind the counter. "What a surprise, Dr Mills. What can I do for you today?"

She would have almost rolled her eyes at the fakeness of it all, but she didn't want to play into his games today. Today, she needed answers. "Cut the crap, Rumple. You probably already know why I'm here, you always seem to do. I was wondering if there is a chance that the curse may break."

"Ah, so it's your majesty today."

She ignored his comment and raised her eyebrow. "So?"

"So what?"

"I'm waiting for an answer."

"For there to be an answer, there should have been a question, _dearie_." It was funny how much he hadn't changed. Even without the glowing skin, he just looked as malicious as in the other land. His gestures were pretty much the same too. He would move his hands a lot, underlying each word with a gesture of his fingers. His voice would become high-pitched and you could almost imagine the crazy laughs that used to follow his words. But maybe he was only this way with her. After all she had always been one of his favorite play things.

"You understood the question perfectly well, _dear_."

"No, what I understood perfectly well is that our dear queen is wondering if the curse will break because she is afraid she'll lose her Prince Charming when it does."

The condescending tone wasn't lost on the former queen, but once again she decided to ignore it. "So it will break?"

"Ah, so you're not denying that you are indeed sleeping with Snow White's perfect husband?"

"Why bother? You already know everything anyway."

He couldn't help but smile at that. "That I do. I also know that it's killing you that he thinks you're this model of kindness when we both know you're actually the epitome of evilness. That it makes your heart burst with guilt."

Regina froze on the spot. She knew he often had a good insight into things, but this was too much. It was these exact thoughts that had been killing her inside for weeks and hearing them out loud was even worse. "Stop it, Rumple."

But he didn't listen to her, instead he came out from behind the counter and slowly walked towards her, getting closer by the minute. "You want to yell at him. You want to tell him that he shouldn't love you. That he isn't supposed to love you."

"Stop it! Now!" There was no point in hiding how much his words were hitting home. She couldn't really hide it if she wanted to anyway.

He was now inches from her face, about to deliver the last blow. He almost whispered it but Regina heard it all the same. "That you don't deserve to be loved. Wasn't it what your mother taught you? That nobody can love you, because you're not worth it."

It was a reflex then. She raised her hand to slap him but he saw it coming and grabbed her wrist, effectively stopping her movement. She didn't even try to get away. They just stared at each other, Regina's chest heaving fast and Rumple looking for something in her eyes. What exactly, she would never know.

And suddenly he had her pinned against the counter and his lips pressed into hers while his hands fumbled with her shirt. She hadn't seen it coming and she didn't push him away. She had no idea why. She just knew that right now she needed the hungered and almost violent gestures. It was a stark contrast with David and she needed it. The evil queen needed it. She couldn't stand to be locked away anymore.

Gold saw the change between two kisses. He could see it in her eyes, how they had considerably darkened. He could also see it at the smirk she was now sporting. His own mirrored hers and it didn't come as a surprise when she lurched towards him again and ripped all his clothes off before pushing him into the opposite wall. He hadn't realized how much he had missed the evil queen before then.

* * *

It was only an hour later, when they were both laying naked on the bed in Gold's backroom, that Regina realized what she had done. How could she have let the evil queen come out like that? She had made such progress in the past months. How could a simple mention of her mother and her lessons have made her snap like that? How had that turned out in her sleeping with _Rumplestiltskin_ out of all people?

_Oh god, Rumple._ She turned her head and saw him lying next to her. She immediately jumped out of the bed, taking the sheets with her to cover herself. He laughed at that. "No need to be so shy. It's nothing I haven't already seen, really."

She blushed for a few seconds, embarrassed, but soon all she could feel was her familiar anger. "How could you do that, Rumple?"

"I didn't force you. And from what I remember, you quite enjoyed yourself too, so stop being so over-dramatic."

"_Over-dramatic_? You took advantage of the emotional mess I was, -because of you, I might add- and it was the evil queen who enjoyed herself, not me."

"But you are the evil queen, dearie. It's time you stop fooling yourself. All this being good crap, it's not you."

"I_ was_ good! Before you came along, I _was_ good! I'm going to find the girl I was again and finally be happy. I deserve to be happy. I deserve to be loved." She could feel the tears pooling in her eyes and knew that she had to go if she didn't want to break in front of him once more. She grabbed her clothes on her way to the front door and pulled them on as fast as she could, grateful for the blinds on the windows.

She ran to her car and reached for her keys. But her fingers didn't close around her car keys, they found the keys from David's apartment instead. That's when she finally bursted into tears. She had ruined everything. There was no way she could keep the keys now. She swore she had done it on purpose. She had gotten scared of how things were going with David and she had done something to ruin it. She couldn't even grasp the chance at happiness she was given without messing it up.

She slowly drove towards his apartment and stared at the door for a few minutes before sliding the keys and a neatly folded piece of paper under it. She couldn't help the lonesome tear that escaped when she realized what she had just given up. But it was for the best. She had just been fooling herself thinking that this could work. There was no universe in which the Evil Queen and Prince Charming could have their happy ending together. It had been pure madness to think so.


	3. Chapter 3

A/N : You're lucky that I'm really inspired lately. I rarely update this fast. I should probably be studying a little more but writing new chapters is way funnier to do! I hope you'll be satisfied with this one, I'm not a really confident writer. Your reviews are really nice by the way, you guys are the best!

And I'm always afraid that some people will think that I write Regina completely out of character but I like to think that if she had really seen the curse as her second chance, she might have turned out that way. Apparently the writers do not see it the same way as I do but that's why we have fanfiction, right? Anyway, I hope you'll enjoy this chapter and that tonight's episode won't turn us into a big sobbing mess! :)

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**9 weeks before-**

As Regina's knife slid easily into the apples, she could feel her worries go away. Baking always helped when her mind was restless. She rarely found the time to do it and knew that right now wasn't the right time either. She would have to be at the hospital in less than a hour and wouldn't have the time to do all that she was supposed to do before leaving, but she didn't care. Right now she needed to get her mind into baking, or she would go mad.

She couldn't stop thinking about David. She missed him. A lot. And it had only been one week. She had successfully avoided seeing him in person but he still wouldn't leave her thoughts. She hadn't expected it to hurt so much. Somehow he had become more important to her that she had initially thought he would.

It was always the same. She would get lost in thoughts of how nice it was to spend time with him, and then she would think of what she had done with Gold. How she had messed everything up. And then the small bliss that she had found when reliving her good memories with David would fade away, replaced by dark thoughts of how she would never change. Never be good enough for someone like David.

She chanced a glance at the clock and frowned. Kathryn was late. She was supposed to pick up Henry and take him to his soccer practice. Regina would have loved to do it herself but she had an important surgery to do this morning and couldn't really tell her patient that she would rather cheer her son on the bleachers while he was trying to score a goal. And it wasn't entirely true either.

She really liked that patient so she was glad that she had finally agreed to this surgery, and she didn't really look forward to spending a morning on the cold bleachers while her son ignored her anyway. He had pulled away from her when he had found out that he was adopted and had been giving her the cold shoulder ever since. Archie had suggested that giving him time would be the best solution. Eventually he would realize that it didn't really matter that Regina wasn't his biological mother and he would stop asking about his_ real_ mother. Until then she just had to put up with him.

And now she had to put up with not seeing David anymore too. It was just a little bit too much. And completely her fault too, but she tried not to think too much about that. No, she was baking and everything was fine. At least until she heard someone clear her throat behind her.

She jumped a little, startled at the intrusion, and turned, the knife still in her hand. Her grip grew tighter when she found out that it was David. "David. What are you doing here?"

"Henry let me in." She didn't say anything, silently urging him to explain himself, and he shifted uncomfortably on his feet. "Something came up with Kathryn and she asked me if I could take Henry to his practice. I tried to say no to her but she didn't really let me the chance to do it, and honestly Regina, I needed to see you."

"Why?"

"_Why?_ Because the last time I heard from you was on a piece of paper that made absolutely no sense."

Once again, she remained silent before slowly turning back to the kitchen counter and dropping the knife before starting disposing the apples one by one on a dish. "That piece of paper tells you everything you need to know." She still had her back towards him and he had to strain his ears to hear what she was saying, but still, he heard it and it made his blood boil.

"No, Regina._ 'I am sorry, I do not deserve you'_ isn't everything I need to know. Far from it. It doesn't make any sense! I know I screwed up when I gave you the keys. It was too soon. I realized it as soon as I said it, and I'm sorry if it scared you. But it doesn't justify you completely avoiding me. What we had was something. At least admit that!" He could see her flinching at his words and knew he had gotten to her somehow. She still wouldn't turn but he was not going to give up. "And cut the bullshit about you not deserving me. I don't even know what that means and I don't care. You're an amazing person, Regina. You deserve everything that can make you happy. And don't even try telling me that you weren't happy with me, because I know that's not true." There was still no apparent reaction from her and he was finding it really frustrating. "Speak to me, Regina! Please."

She had finished placing the apples on the dish and she was now clutching the kitchen counter so hard that her knuckles were white. She was afraid of collapsing on the ground if she let go. When he was finally done talking, she bit back the tears which were threatening to fall and took a deep breath before grabbing the dish and putting it in the oven. When she finally turned towards him, she had managed to put back on a neutral face, but she still wouldn't meet his eyes. "I should probably go see if Henry is ready."

But as she made her way towards the staircase, David grabbed her arm and forced her to face him. Her calm attitude instantly vanished. Gone was the neutral face and the feigned indifference. She couldn't hold it any longer and tears started cascading down her face. "Don't touch me!" She violently pulled her arm away from him and he didn't even try to stop her, surprised at her outburst and the pain he could now see in her eyes. She had turned into a sobbing mess and he wanted to wrap his arms around her so badly, but he obeyed and kept his distance. "Please David, don't make this harder than it is."

Just as he was about to respond, they both heard a small voice coming from the door and turned to see Henry staring at them with wide eyes. "Mom?" Regina instantly started wiping her tears away and tried to gain back her composure. The last thing she needed was Henry learning about this whole mess. She could see the little boy looking back and forth between her and David, trying to understand what was going on but failing at finding any good explanation. "What's going on? Are you okay?"

"Yes, Henry, I'm fine. I'm sorry, honey." She didn't even know why she was apologizing anymore. Lately all she was doing was apologizing. And it was not like it was bringing him back to her either. "David is going to take you to your soccer practice. Are you ready?" He nodded hesitantly and she smiled. "Well, I'll leave you to it then, I have to get ready for work."

She didn't even look in David's direction when she passed him. He watched her disappear upstairs before focusing on Henry. He chanced a smile in his direction. "Ready to go?" Henry nodded and it was the end of it.

* * *

Regina tried to put on a bright smile while entering her patient's hospital room. Her personal life might have been a total mess at the moment, but that didn't mean that she was going to give up on her professional life. "Good morning, Mrs Levitt. How are you doing today, ready for surgery?"

"As ready as I'll ever be. You're good at convincing people to do things they don't want to do, Dr Mills. I'm almost looking forward to it!" The old lady laughed and Regina joined in.

"I'm glad. You'll see that walking will get much easier after this."

"I'm holding you to this, you know. If I can't run faster than my grandchild after this I'm blaming it on you."

"Oh come on, Mrs Levitt, Jason is the best runner of Storybrooke. I might be good at my job but I can't perform miracles."

"How many times do I have to tell you that you can call me Gladys, Dr Mills?"

"As long as you insist on calling me Dr Mills."

"Fair enough."

Regina smiled. She liked spending time with patients like Gladys. She felt more like herself trying to ease their worries than she had ever felt making them fear her in the enchanted forest. Sometimes she would recognize them from her time as the queen and it made her all the more eager to make them better.

Except for some times when she would recognize someone that had wronged her, someone that she would have liked to turn into ashes. She had changed a lot, but not that much. It was times like these when she was glad to have Whale as a co-worker. She might not have good memories of him in her past, but he had long since redeemed himself to her. He would accept every patient she claimed not being able to help, without asking any questions, and he would never mention it again. It made her job way easier, even if she knew it was probably not really ethic. But she was not perfect and if she wanted to stay on the right path, there were some persons that she preferred avoiding. And then there were persons like Gladys that made it all better.

She went to check on her vitals and noted something on her notepad before facing her again. "Well, if you don't have any more questions then I think you're ready to go. Mark and Conrad will take you to the O.R."

She went to leave but was stopped by the frail hand of Mrs Levitt. "Wait, Regina. Something is troubling you, is everything okay with me?"

Regina's eyes widened and she quickly went to sit and comfort her patient, cursing in her head for worrying her without any good reason. "Yes, of course. I'm sorry I made you believe otherwise. Just something personal, don't worry about it."

"No offense, dear, but I have every right to be worried if the person who is going to cut me open is troubled."

"Don't worry, Mrs Levitt, I'm much better with a scalpel than with my personal life. Of that I can assure you."

"Then I trust you." Regina smiled and squeezed the old lady's hand. "And call me Gladys, after all I called you Regina."

They both laughed before being interrupted by the two men bringing the stretcher to bring Gladys into the operating room. Regina greeted them before getting on her feet. Just as she was reaching the door she heard Gladys addressing her. "I hope it gets better. Your personal life, I mean."

Regina turned, smiling more genuinely than she had all week. "Me too. Thank you, Gladys." Her steps were lighter as she went to change before scrubbing in. Maybe she would be okay after all.


	4. Chapter 4

A/N : And here is some Whale/Regina friendship for all of you guys. I know that's probably not the reason why you follow this fic, but I feel like Regina needs all the friends she can get and Whale seems like a good enough candidate. Don't forget to tell me what you think and if there are things you would like to see in this story or characters that you would like me to write about, don't hesitate to ask. I'll be only too happy to please.

* * *

**One day before -**

Whale entered the staff room to find Regina slumped on the couch, her arm thrown over her eyes. He smiled at the sight and lifted her legs for a second to sit under them, seeing as she was taking up the whole thing. He watched her for a few minutes. She seemed tired, really tired. He wasn't really surprised though. She had spent the past two months at the hospital, picking up night shifts in addition to her usual work days. He could tell that something was wrong, probably with Henry, because usually her refusal to work the night shifts was due to the fact that she didn't want to abandon him for the night.

He had tried asking a few times where Henry was and she would just mention some sleepovers with his friends or at Katherine's house. He could have pushed harder but he rather envisioned their friendship as one where you tease each other and joke about light stuff, not one where you analyse your personal problems while braiding each other's hair. Even just the idea of Regina letting him touch her hair made him chuckle. Yes, they definitely didn't have that kind of friendship.

But somehow he knew that he would have to say something soon. Two months of burying herself in her work had taken a toll on her and he couldn't let her continue like this. It didn't matter if he didn't know exactly what their friendship was, she was still his friend and friends cared about the well-being of the other. With that in mind he gently patted her legs. "Regina?"

She stirred a little and groaned. Apparently she didn't like being interrupted while she attempted to take a nap.

He chuckled at her reaction and tried again, not at all deterred by her attitude. As her friend and coworker he was used to all the moods she could find herself in and knew how to handle most of them. "You're okay?" When she grumbled again and didn't give any coherent answer, he leaned towards her and gently pried her arm away from her face. "You know I'm not going to go away until you give me a real answer."

She shot him a glare but by now he was used to these, and even found that they were part of her charm. "And you know that bothering me while I'm resting is not very smart." She paused for just one second and he knew that she had given up on her nap when he saw the beginning of her usual smirk. "But again, you're not the smartest guy I know."

He playfully placed his hands on his heart and looked mocked-hurt. "Ouch. And here I thought you had me on that huge pedestal in your mind."

A pillow came flying towards him and he could see Regina shaking her head, trying to hide a smile. She sat up a little, taking her legs away from his lap and tucking them under herself. "You're lucky I didn't have anything heavier."

"Oh come on Regina, I know you wouldn't hurt me."

Whale swore he saw something cross Regina's eyes for a moment but it was gone as soon as it came. She lowered her gaze and started playing with the hem of her scrubs. "I wouldn't be so sure if I were you." But she shook her head and faked a smile, making it clear that they were dropping the subject. He put it on the list of the weird things about Regina. He had quickly found out that there was a lot he didn't know about her. She was always vague about her past. But again, so was he, and most of the people in this town, but he didn't dwell on it too much.

There was a comfortable silence before Whale started his second offensive. After all he hadn't woken her up for nothing. "So, are you okay?"

"I'm fine." She didn't even look up and she knew he could see right through it. She hadn't even tried to sound convincing. She was just hoping he would drop it. He usually wasn't that pushy. Which made her realize that she must have looked really awful. Her strategy of focusing on patients rather than on David was catching up to her. But at least when she was nearing exhaustion, her mind wouldn't even know who David was anymore and that was exactly what she was going for.

"Okay, fine. You don't want to talk about it. I get it. But you're not fine, Regina. You're exhausted. I don't know what's going on in your personal life right now and I won't force you to tell me. But avoiding it by working too much isn't going to fix it. If something is going on with Henry, you have to talk to him, spend time with him, not send him to whoever wants him for the night. If that's more of a romantical issue, then just go out for drinks with someone. Trust me, half the town would be more than happy to go out with you. Myself included." He just added the last bit to lighten the mood, uncomfortable with the seriousness of his tirade.

She rolled her eyes. "Never going to happen."

"A man can dream." They both smiled but he could see that once again she was trying to deflect the conversation. "But seriously, that's all you got from what I said?"

"No, I also got that you're being all concerned about me, but honestly I can take care of myself. I don't need someone to tell me what to do." She was starting to sound annoyed and honestly he would be lying if he said he hadn't been expecting it. Commenting on Regina's life was a risky business.

"I'm not trying to tell you what to do."

And that's what made her snap. He might not know it but this was a touchy subject for her. "Yes, you kind of are and I don't appreciate it. If I want to talk to Henry or sleep with some random guy, that's my concern, not yours."

He quickly raised his hands in surrender, not liking the way things had escalated. "Regina, I'm just trying to be your friend there."

She could only see honesty in his eyes and she wondered why she had felt so threatened all of a sudden. He was right, he was only trying to help. And she should have been happy to have someone caring for her. That was always something she had been missing before coming to Storybrooke, and even now she wasn't used to it. "I'm sorry, I'm just tired I guess." She smiled sheepishly then. She had realized that she had just admitted what he had been trying to make her say all along.

"Don't worry about it." He scooted closer to where she was sitting and wrapped his arm around her shoulders. She responded by resting her head on his shoulder. Before she could fall asleep, Whale decided to try one more time. "Regina?"

"Mmmh?"

"Just to humor me, would you consider taking the day off tomorrow?"

Her first instinct was to flat out refuse, but then she remembered that he was just trying to help and maybe he was right. Maybe she needed a day off. She hadn't taken one in two months and maybe she should have, if not for her sake then at least for the sake of her patients. She hadn't made any mistake yet but she would rather not tempt her chance too much. It's not like she had a good karma to go from. Not that she believed in any of that, of course, but she really didn't want to add to all of her other problems the guilt of putting at risk the life of her patients.

And hopefully she wouldn't think about David and how much she was missing him. Or about Henry trying his hardest to figure out where to find his birth mother when she had told him countless times that it was a closed adoption and that it meant that his birth mother didn't want to be found. Maybe she could even go riding. She hadn't done that in ages. That would surely help her clear her mind. Yes, a day off sounded good. "I guess I could, yes."

"What? You're not even going to fight me on this?"

"Would you rather that I do?"

"No, I'm just surprised."

"What can I say? I'm a woman full of surprises." She looked at him with a smug grin and he laughed.

"That you are."

She stared at him suspiciously but he could see that she was still in a playful mood. "What does that mean?"

"Just that whenever I feel like I finally figured you out, there is a new side of you that pops out and I'm back to square one."

"Well, that can only mean one thing, dear." She made a dramatic pause for the effect and he raised his eyebrow in question, playing along with her. "You shouldn't try to figure me out. There are just some mysteries that are better left unknown."

He laughed good-heartedly but he couldn't understand how much she meant those words. How much she wanted for her past to completely disappear. She wished she could just erase it so that nobody would never figure it out, and most of all, so that she wouldn't have to leave with it anymore.

She couldn't help but think that her life would have been so much easier, hadn't she been manipulated so much. If her mother had not been longing for power so much. If Rumplestiltskin hadn't wanted to involve her in his big plans. But she couldn't blame everything on them either. She had made some choices that she should never have made. And that was why she couldn't have David. Why she should forget him and move on.

Alas, some things are easier said than done.


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: Hello everyone! I've been meaning to publish this chapter earlier but the internet at my grandmother's house is driving me crazy. The fact that my family is huge and very clingy doesn't help either. But I finally managed to do it! At first there was supposed to be another scene in this chapter but the scene with Regina and David was already quite long (I can't help myself with these two) and I didn't want to make you wait longer. I hope you'll like it, don't forget to tell me what you think. :)

And I was also wondering if you preferred that I write a lot of scenes between David and Regina and leave out the other characters or if the way I'm writing it now is okay.

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**Current time -**

Regina was glad that Whale had forced her to take a day off. So far it had been going great. She had woken up early and had directly gone to the stables, knowing she would have the place for herself at such an early hour. It felt great being all alone in the fields around the stables. She had felt free from everything, as she always did when she rode her favorite house. It was a shame that she didn't do it more often. That made her promise herself that she would go at least three mornings a week after that. Maybe it would be a better solution to her problems than overworking herself.

Afterwards she had come home with the idea of cooking Henry's favorite meal so that she could put him in a good mindset and have a serious talk with him this evening. She would rather think that it wasn't because of what Whale told her the previous day, but if she was being honest, it probably was. Not that she wouldn't have come up with the idea of talking with Henry on her own, but lately she had been so wrapped up in her problems that she hadn't even considered this simple idea. Hopefully it would help.

But then she noticed that she missed most of the ingredients she needed and realized that she had been neglecting groceries lately. She briefly wondered if she had maybe been neglecting too many things. What if in top of believing that his birth mother was better, now Henry believed that his adoptive mother couldn't take care of him anymore?

She quickly brushed off the thought and entered the grocery store. She was not supposed to be worrying today. Today was about having some time for herself to relax and gain back the energy she had lost in the past few months. Not that one day would be enough, but it was always a start.

As she was looking at some cereal brands, trying to decide which one was the best, she heard someone call her name and her heart missed a beat. She hadn't heard that voice since the incident in the kitchen. Or at least she hadn't heard it for real, because she had heard it way too many times in her head. That's why she turned. Just to check if it was really him, and not her crazy brain acting out.

But it was him. The real David. The one that immediately got her heart to beat faster and her mind to go blank.

They both stared at each other for a few seconds, secretly glad to see the other after a two months separation. But the moment was over soon enough and just as Regina was about to slide into the personality of the professional doctor who didn't have any kind of overly personal relationship with the man in front of her, David cut her off. He was nervous but he knew he had to act fast before she pushed him away. He had to take advantage of her surprise.

"Hi, Regina." He saw that she was about to walk away from him but he gently grabbed her forearm and forced her to turn back to him. "I promise I'm respecting your wishes and staying out of your life." That seemed to stop her for a moment as she tilted her head so he pushed his luck and went on with what he was saying. "That's why I wanted to talk to you actually. Henry invited me to his soccer game and said you would be there. The thing is that I wasn't sure you would want me there."

She was silent for a few seconds, considering what he was actually asking her. After some time she finally met his gaze and spoke quietly. "What did you say to him?"

"That I would think about it."

Regina was surprised that he would care so much about her opinion on the matter. She knew he really liked Henry and loved seeing his soccer games. And apparently he was ready to turn him down if she didn't feel comfortable with him being there. He was really being the good guy there. If she had been in his shoes she probably would have played the role of the bitter ex. But again maybe it was why she was the Evil Queen and he was Prince Charming.

She thought it over for a while before saying anything else. On one hand he was right, she definitely didn't want to spend an afternoon with him watching Henry's game. That would be really awkward and judging by how flustered she was when only spending a few minutes with him among racks of cereals, she couldn't imagine what it would be like during a whole afternoon. But then she probably wouldn't have to see him that much anyway. They could sit on opposite sides of the bleachers and the only interactions they would have would be in the presence of Henry. Surely she could manage that.

She suddenly realized how pathetic she was being. She was supposed to be a strong woman. She wasn't supposed to be scared of a man. Of course she would be able to handle it. Upon realizing this she gave him a little smile. "If you want to go I won't be the one stopping you. I'm sure that would make Henry really happy."

He smiled back, still a little nervous but feeling like things were about to get better. "You're sure you're fine with it?"

Another small smile, just as hard to pull off as the one before. "I'm sure. It's just a game, right?"

"Right." But somehow he didn't think that it was just a game and he could swear she felt the same way. They wouldn't be so nervous if it was just a game.

There was an awkward silence before Regina finally met his eyes again and spoke in a really quiet voice. "How are you?" She didn't know why she was asking. And most of all she didn't know what she wanted him to answer. There was truly no right answer to that question.

He didn't avert his eyes and answered in the same quiet way. "You wouldn't like the answer." The truth was that he was hurt. He was miserable and he felt so powerless. But most of all he was confused. He didn't understand what had happened. This couldn't just be just about the keys, there was something more underneath it and he wanted to find out what. That way maybe he could fix it. But he didn't want to harass her for the reason. Him pushing her too much was what had put them in this position in the first place. So he was stuck, silently hoping that if he complied to her wishes, she might come around.

She slowly nodded. He was right and he knew it. There was nothing more to say. That question had been stupid. However she was startled from her thoughts by his next question.

"And you? How are you?"

Apparently she wasn't the only one asking stupid questions. But she couldn't blame him, especially when she had literally done the same thing merely seconds ago. They had been asking themselves for months if the other felt the same pain as they did, without truly knowing if it was something they wanted or not. It was normal that when they finally met, they tried to get the answer. But for some reason they wouldn't let each other get it. "You wouldn't understand."

She saw a flash of hurt in his eyes and knew that she probably shouldn't have said it that way. But it was the only thing she could come up with. She couldn't even understand herself how she was feeling. She was too conflicted. She wanted everything at once. She had always wanted everything at once. But she couldn't get it. She couldn't look at herself in the mirror if she went back to David without taking into account Snow's feelings, or without telling him that she had slept with Gold that day that had changed it all. And one thing was for sure, she would never tell him.

It was funny though. She could get over all the horrors she had caused in the other land, it wasn't easy but still she managed. But it was the guilt of betraying Charming, her former enemy's husband, that got to her. The feeling of knowing that if she stayed with him, that thing with Gold was only the beginning of a series of betrayals. Not that she wanted to, but she couldn't trust herself, not when it had been that easy to slip.

"I would like to. Understand, I mean."

Her head snapped in his direction, startled. But just as she was about to answer, some kids running in the aisle passed her by and made her lose her balance. The next thing she knew David arms were around her and she was pressed against his chest. She suddenly turned a bright shade of red, surprised by how much she liked being in his arms and by how much her body was responding to it.

She quickly backed away from his chest but she was still standing very close and his hands were still holding her upper arms. They were both reluctant to break the contact. It felt too good and they missed it too much. When their eyes finally met they could see how much that small contact was affecting them. And David couldn't help but think that Regina had been right earlier when she had told him he wouldn't understand. How could she leave him when it was so obvious that she wanted him? Or maybe he was misreading her body language and she was just uncomfortable with their closeness.

But that thought quickly faded away when he saw her gaze travel over his face before finally resting on his lips. She wanted to kiss him. That was definitely something he couldn't be misreading. He had seen that gaze way too many times to mistake it for something else.

And in that awkward position he felt hope. During these two months when they had been avoiding each other his worst fear had been that she meant it. That she really didn't want anything to do with him. But no, she definitely wanted him. There was just something holding her back and he would make it his job to figure out what it was. He wouldn't just give up. Not when he had the confirmation that his feelings were reciprocated.

They were both pulled out of the trance they were in by the mother of the kids that had been running around. Regina instantly jumped away from David, looking rather embarrassed by what had just transpired. The woman who was still apologizing for the behavior of her kids was completely oblivious to the scene she was witnessing. She didn't notice the tension between the doctor and the vet and Regina felt grateful for it. Everything was already complicated enough.

She accepted the woman's apology with a polite smile and took advantage of her asking David about her dog to make her way towards the register. Being away from him, she could finally think straight and she suddenly remembered that she had encouraged him to come to Henry's game. Which meant that she would be seeing him way too soon. What had she gotten herself into?


	6. Chapter 6

A/N: Sorry for the delay. I'm so glad that there are still new followers to this story and I hope that the "old" ones are not getting bored by it. I know that it's not moving really fast but I don't want to ruin it. And I'll take into account 's review and try to add some more Evil Charming scenes. I love them too! This chapter is more about friendship though, because I live in a imaginary world where Regina can make friends instead of being judged by all the people of Storybrooke constantly. And at the end of it we get to the idea I originally had for this story, I hope you'll like it!

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**Same day -**

After her awkward meeting with David at the grocery store, Regina decided to treat herself with lunch at Granny's. The last thing she needed was to find herself alone with her thoughts in her big and deserted white mansion, and the diner seemed like a nice alternative. She loved the constant rush of people, the never-ending buzz of conversation and the anonymity it offered. She usually sat at the counter for a few minutes, gulping down her morning coffee before rushing to the hospital, but today she chose a little table by the window, overlooking the entire establishment, glad that she finally would have the time to breathe in the atmosphere of the diner.

She smiled as Ruby approached her table. "Skipping work, Dr Mills?" The girl's tone was playful, as usual, which never ceased to surprise Regina, knowing that Red would probably have bit her head off, had she sat in her diner. But that was what the curse was for after all, a fresh start, even if it seemed a little fake sometimes. As if all these people were playing a part. A part that she had created for them.

"Taking a much needed break. Are you going to send me back to work?" It was funny how easy it was to talk with all of these people now. It had been strained at first, at least on her part, but now the conversation flew easily.

Ruby seemed to think it over for a moment, her finger resting on her chin, but her expression soon turned into a big smile. "No. I like having you here. You're much more interesting than most of the people here." She glanced at the table behind them where a young man who had really nothing going on for him was studying the menu very thoroughly.

Regina caught the glance and laughed. "There is nothing wrong with picking your food carefully."

The young girl rolled her eyes. "He probably knows the menu by heart by now, I don't know why he still bothers. In twenty minutes exactly he is going to order a burger with fries just like he always does. This town is so boring."

"And I'm not?"

"No. You're different. I don't know why but you are. There is just something about you. You change, others don't." She shook her head, clearly starting a conversation she hadn't been meaning to start. "Anyway, what can I get you?" She took out her notepad and pen and waited for the order with a smile.

Regina was actually surprised by how insightful the girl seemed to be. She wondered if it was true though. She had to admit that people seemed to always follow the same routine but sometimes some surprised her. Like David. He had stepped out of his rehearsed role when he had asked her out. And over and over again afterwards when he had kept on surprising her with thoughtful gestures and impromptu meetings. But she couldn't think about that, not now. She was with Ruby and she would focus on what she had to say instead of on what might or might not have happened with David.

Nevertheless she was glad that the conversation was dropped because she didn't know what it would lead to. Were people starting questioning why things never changed in Storybrooke, or was it just the ranting of a girl stuck in a small town? She didn't need to add the breaking of the curse to her endless list of worries so she pushed the thought away. She would just ignore it and enjoy people being friendly to her while she still could. "Surprise me. It seems that you don't like people always picking the same thing. I wouldn't want to get on your bad side."

Ruby flashed her her brightest grin, truly enjoying the company. "Smart choice, Dr Mills. Prepare to be amazed."

A few minutes after Ruby had disappeared in the kitchen, Regina was once again interrupted by someone approaching her table. She looked up and put on a bright and genuine smile when she saw who it was. She got on her feet and started greeting her favorite patient. "Gladys! How are you doing today? Is the hip okay?"

"Perfect, you're working miracles Dr Mills."

"Regina. And I'm merely doing my job."

"Well, it's a good job that you have."

They were interrupted by Ruby bringing water to the table. She noticed the conversation between the two women and turned towards Gladys instead of going off to serve other customers. "Are you joining Dr Mills for lunch, Mrs Levitt? I can set up something for you, if you'd like."

The old lady immediately shook her head. "I wouldn't want to impose, I'm just going to sit at the counter."

It was Regina's turn to shake her head. "Nonsense. I was alone anyway and I wouldn't mind the company. You're my favorite patient after all."

"Well, in that case I wouldn't say no. An old lady like myself doesn't get much company."

It was settled then and they both sat at the table as Ruby took Gladys' order. Once she was gone they talked animatedly about everything, both enjoying a little reprieve in their lonely life for one and stressful one for the other.

Soon enough Ruby brought them their food and Regina started picking at her food before adding various condiments. Gladys wrinkled her nose at the display. "Do you always put that much awful things in your food?"

Regina looked at her plate and realized how horrible it looked. She frowned. "Not really. I usually eat in a really healthy way. I always thought that a doctor must set the example." She thought it over for a moment, wondering why she had been eating weird stuff lately. Eventually she shrugged. "I don't know, lately I've been having these weird cravings. And there are some things that don't look so good anymore. It's weird." She started eating then, actually enjoying the curious mix without really analyzing it. She was famished.

Gladys looked her over with a curious look, starting to notice things she hadn't seen before. "You look tired."

"Yeah, I've been working too much lately."

"I take it things in your personal life didn't get better?"

"Not really..."

"Problems with some guy?"

Gladys was fishing for information now but Regina was oblivious to the real reason behind her questions. She was just glad to have someone with whom she could maybe talk of these things. That it had to be an old lady that she didn't know that much wasn't lost on her though. But she didn't really care, Gladys looked like someone you could trust. Like the mother she had never had. Regina's heart pinched at the memory of her controlling mother. She wished she could have had a mother like Gladys, maybe she would have turned out completely differently then.

She offered her a pained smile, forcing the memory of her mother out of her head and focusing on her current problems. "There is that. And Henry too. And I can't sleep properly." She laughed nervously, embarrassed by the vulnerability she was showing. She usually was a very guarded person. "I guess you could say that I'm not really at my best."

But Gladys' expression then wasn't the comforting one she had been expecting. Before she could ask what was going on though, the woman covered the hand that she had resting on the table and looked at her straight in the eyes. "Regina, I really do not want to add something to your list of worries but have you _maybe_ thought that you _might_ be... pregnant?"

Regina's eyes instantly widened as she stared in front of her, mouth gaping wide. "No. I can't have children. I can't-" She was grasping at straws, mentally calculating how long it had been since her last period. It had been a long time, a really long time. More than two months. How could she not have noticed that? Was she really that preoccupied?

Or maybe it was because the thought of being pregnant had never even crossed her mind. She wasn't even supposed to be able to have children, she had made sure of that when she was in the Enchanted Forest. She had gone to Rumplestiltskin after marrying Leopold and she had begged him, asking him to make sure that she would never have children with the husband that she could never love.

She had always wanted children with Daniel and when that possibility had been taken away, she had been disgusted at the mere idea of giving the children that she had promised Daniel to Snow's old father. The imp had offered her a radical solution, a potion that would make sure she would never have children. She hadn't thought much of it then, thinking that she would forever be trapped with the king anyway. She had given up on having children of her own.

And even after murdering the king, she hadn't really looked for a way to cancel the effects of the potion. What would the Evil Queen have done with a child? Motherhood wasn't really an option she could have considered then. This would have been cruel on the child and it would have gotten in the way of her plans for revenge.

It was different now that she had Henry and that she had given up on her revenge. But still, it wasn't possible. "I can't be pregnant."

But Gladys could see the panic in Regina's eyes and it assured her that her idea wasn't so far-fetched. "I'm no doctor so I won't pretend that I know better than you, but I've had four kids. I know the signs."

"But I can't. That's why I adopted Henry." Regina wouldn't budge. This was not possible and she wouldn't panic over something that wasn't possible. Her life was already a big enough mess. She didn't need to add a baby in the mix. A baby that would come with a father. Her heart suddenly missed a beat at that thought. And who was the father exactly? It should have been David, but it could as well be Gold. But no, she wasn't pregnant. There was no need to worry about that.

Gladys rolled her eyes at the stubbornness of the woman in front of her. "Well, what do you say we buy you a pregnancy test and figure out if it's possible or not? I'm sure I'm right but you obviously need some tangible proof. And honestly I can't blame you for that."

"I'm not buying a pregnancy test. Everyone will talk."

"You're just stalling."

"No, I'm not. It's a small town. And I don't want everyone thinking that I'm off cavorting with some guy that got me pregnant! I need for my patients to respect me."

The defense mechanism wasn't lost on Gladys though. She knew that Regina was arguing just for the sake of arguing because she was afraid of what the test would say. But ignoring something like that wouldn't make it go away, no matter how much the former queen wished it could. "Then I'll be the one buying it and I'll meet you back at your house."

She was met with silence then. Regina couldn't find anything to answer back. She needed to know for sure. Now that the question was out she needed an answer or she would never rest. If she was being honest, she was actually glad that she had someone to help her through it. She would never have dared to buy that test on her own. "Fine."


	7. Chapter 7

A/N : Hello everyone! Thank you so much for all the reviews on the previous chapter! I'm glad that you all liked Regina being pregnant. It was actually what gave me the idea for this fic. I'm in med school and we had that class about pregnancy and I just thought about Regina and started to write the story in my head (probably not the best way to pay attention to a class though). I wrote a chapter longer than usual to thank you and I even added a little David and Regina scene just for you! :)

Don't forget to tell me what you think, it's always warmly welcomed.

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Regina was refusing to open her eyes. Her alarm had ringed, signaling that the result of her pregnancy test was up. If she looked down at the stick now she would finally find out if she was indeed pregnant. But she couldn't do it, not when she already knew what the result would be and how much she wanted it to be the opposite. She silently willed the stick to show her what she wanted to see but her magic wasn't working here and it wouldn't have helped anyway. That stupid test was only the messenger. And there was no changing the message.

So she opened her eyes slowly and carefully looked down, sighing when her fears were confirmed. She was indeed pregnant. And she had no idea who the father was. She didn't want it to be Gold's. She didn't want to be linked even more to that man than she already was and she surely didn't want to give him a kid. Not now and not ever. Seeing what he had done to her, how he had changed her from that naive and hopeful girl to that heartless and miserable queen, she wouldn't wish that on anybody. And certainly not on any child of hers. The thought only made her shiver.

However, she didn't want it to be David's child either. Because it would mean that she wouldn't be able to stay away from him. It would crumble her last defense and she wouldn't be able to keep on pretending that the break-up she had wanted was actually making her happy. She would want to go back in the safety of his arms, where he would reassure her and tell her that everything would be okay, that he would help her raise this child and that this one wouldn't start looking for something, or someone, better than her. That she and him would be enough for this child. That they could be happy.

But no, she couldn't let herself fall for that fantasy. They would never be able to be a perfect and happy family because eventually she would hurt him, she would hurt them all. The Evil Queen was still there, ready to come out, even if just for a moment, and she didn't want David to be there when that happened. She couldn't really erase what she had done with Gold either, she couldn't pretend that she wasn't uncertain about the paternity of her child. And David didn't deserve that. He didn't deserve to be told that the child she was bearing could as well be his as Gold's.

The only other option was for her to get rid of it before it became an issue. But she couldn't either. Not when she had been so happy with Henry. She loved being a mother. She had always thought that it wouldn't be possible for her to bare her own child but now that it was she couldn't get the thought out of her mind. What if it was only a one time deal? What if she wouldn't get that chance anymore? Granted the conditions weren't ideal, but it was probably her only chance.

She gasped when she came to the conclusion that she did want this child and that she was actually happy of the result of the test. Everything was so messed up. She was a mess. She glanced at herself in the mirror and noticed tears streaming down her cheeks. She hadn't even noticed she had started crying. She looked broken, truly broken. But again, hadn't she always been? She snorted, thinking that this image of brokenness shouldn't surprise her anymore.

She noticed Gladys entering the bathroom in the corner of the mirror. She had wanted to give the brunette some sort of privacy and had decided to wait on the other side of the door, in Regina's bedroom, but she had been startled by the muffled sobs coming from inside the bathroom. She had wondered if she should let the woman time to collect herself first but when it didn't seem to get better, she had finally decided on coming in. Regina had always been there to hear about her medical issues as well as her family issues, it was time she repaid the favor.

Regina saw her take a glance at the test, just to confirm her suspicions, before meeting her eyes. She saw only compassion there and it made the tears flow just a little bit stronger. She was grateful for the woman being there with her and that was why she didn't struggle when the old lady grabbed her arm to turn her around, before wrapping the crying brunette in her small arms. She buried her face in the woman's shoulder and let the sobs come out.

Gladys was gently stroking her hair, murmuring soothing words into her ear, and in that moment Regina let herself believe that Gladys was her mother and that she loved her. That got her to calm down. She felt secure. She slowly backed away from the embrace and chanced a small smile.

"Feeling better?"

Regina nodded hesitantly. There was still a lot on her mind and her issues were far from resolved but she did feel a little better.

"Wanna talk about it?"

She sighed and looked at her feet but didn't shake her head no. She was actually considering it, thinking that if maybe she could share her burden with someone, there would be a little less weight on her shoulders.

Gladys didn't wait for a more elaborate response, already glad that the woman hadn't completely brushed her off. She walked out of the bathroom and sat on Regina's bed expecting for the brunette to follow her. Regina hesitated for a moment before finally taking the hint and sitting next to Gladys. She didn't seem ready to talk so Gladys tried to start the conversation by the question that was at the forefront of her mind. "Who is the father?"

Regina sighed and let herself fall backwards, her back resting on the bed and her legs dangling over the edge of the bed. She placed her hands on her face and shook it from side to side. "I screwed up. I screwed up really bad and I can't tell them. I can't tell them that I'm pregnant."

Gladys looked at Regina with a confused look but no explanations came. "Who is_ them_, Regina?"

She was silent for a moment. She was so ashamed of herself in that moment and was grateful for her hands hiding her face when she finally whispered. "The possible fathers."

The other woman's eyes instantly widened in surprise and she too was grateful for the hands on Regina's face. She didn't want the brunette to think that she was judging her, knowing that it was the last thing that she needed right now, but she couldn't help but feel surprised either. She quickly recovered though, not wanting to show how startled she was. "Do I know them?"

"Probably, but I don't want to talk about it." She had already said enough, and it didn't seem like such a good idea anymore. Not when she still hadn't accepted herself who the potential fathers were. She didn't think she would ever come to terms with it either. David maybe, but Gold certainly not.

Gladys sensed that it was a sensitive subject and decided to steer the conversation in another direction. "Are you going to keep it?"

"Yes." The answer came immediately and it was a definitive one. It once again surprised Regina how much she wanted this child. At least there was one thing she knew.

The old woman nodded, glad that the brunette had taken this decision. She loved babies and she couldn't remember the last time she had seen one in Storybrooke. Not that it mattered much in the decision but still, she was glad. "Okay." There was some silence for a moment before Gladys finally blurted what they were both trying to avoid. "You know that you're going to have to tell them if you keep it."

Regina nodded before taking her hands off her face and sitting up. "I know."

* * *

Henry waited for Regina and Gladys to leave the room before discretely entering it and running towards the bathroom. His mother had no idea that he even was in the house and he intended on keeping it that way. He hadn't planned any of this. He had just happened to forget his books for the afternoon today and David had been kind enough to offer to drive him home so he could pick them up.

He was just supposed to come in and quickly grab his books, but as he was picking them up in his room he heard his mother crying in the bathroom. He instantly froze. He had already noticed that the wall between his mother's bathroom and his own room was really thin, so he wasn't surprised to hear everything going on in there. But what surprised him grandly was to hear his mother cry. She never showed any weaknesses and it was easy to forget that she could be really sad too.

Especially since Mary Margaret had given him this book of fairy tales. Nobody knew about it, he had made sure of that. He was convinced that the book was real. That's why he was looking for his birth mother, so that she could help everyone. However he would never admit that to Regina. He had only talked about wanting to find his real mother and fortunately she had bought it. It had surprised him, he would have thought that the Evil Queen would be more suspicious. But he had to admit that there were a lot of other things that didn't match between his mother and her fairy tale character. It usually made him question his theory a little. But then he would just brush it off and blame it on her ability to cover her tracks. Bringing the savior into town would make everything clearer, or so he hoped.

Anyway, he couldn't understand why the Evil Queen was crying alone in her bathroom in the middle of the day when she was supposed to be at work. He tried to get closer to her bedroom door to hear what she was saying to the old lady who was with her, but he couldn't make out any of it. After a while he heard them move and hid in his bedroom, waiting for them to be downstairs before scurrying towards his mother's bathroom.

Once inside he looked everywhere before finally noticing the only thing that seemed out of order: the pregnancy test in the trashcan. He picked it up carefully, not entirely sure of what it was. He grabbed the box too and studied it carefully. He gasped when he finally understood what he was holding and what it meant. He instantly dropped everything back in the trash can and ran to his room, picked up his books and got out of the house through the window, definitely not wanting to run into his mom after what he had discovered.

As soon as his feet hit the ground, he started running. He crossed the street and quickly entered David's car, a little out of breath. He stared blankly ahead of him, not knowing what to think right now. He shouldn't have been so curious, then he would never have found out and everything would be so much easier.

David frowned a little at Henry's behavior but started the car anyway, he didn't want for the kid to be late to school. Something had obviously happened though. "Henry? Is everything alright?"

The little boy just continued on staring blankly ahead before finally blurting it out. "I think my mother is pregnant."

The car almost swerved as David's grip on the wheel tightened. He waited for Henry to elaborate, trying not to look too concerned. He knew that Henry was a smart boy and he didn't want to give up more than he should. Regina would kill him if Henry found out about what they had, or what they had had, he didn't really know anymore. The news just made it really hard to stay stoic though, even if there was a grand chance that Regina wasn't really pregnant. She couldn't be.

He remembered an afternoon a few months ago when they had talked about it.

_The sun was shining in through his windows and they were both sitting at his kitchen counter. She had come to surprise him after her day at the hospital and he couldn't have been more happy with the surprise. As soon as he had opened the door she had pushed him against the opposite wall, closing the door with her foot and attacking his lips with a feverish kiss. They had quickly moved on to his bedroom and now they were basking in the afterglow._

_Regina was casually sitting on a stool, wearing David's shirt with her panties and picking at grapes. David was sitting next to her, in only his boxers, and he was entranced by the way she had of casually popping the grapes in her mouth, wondering if she knew the effect it had on him. He doubted it, she seemed lost in her thoughts. He thought about pulling her back into the moment but her smile prevented him from doing that. He loved seeing her genuinely happy so he just kept on staring silently._

_Eventually she caught him and chuckled. She picked up a grape and instead of popping it into her own mouth, she brought it to hi__s lips. He smiled and caught it between his teeth before swallowing it. She pushed the bowl closer to him before finally breaking the silence. "You should eat more fruits."_

_"If you're the one feeding them to me, I might just take the advice." He grinned from ear to ear and she shook her head barely containing her laugh._

_"You're such a kid."_

_"I don't think a kid would do what we did this afternoon." He leaned closer and captured her lips in a sweet kiss to illustrate his words._

_She smiled when he pulled away and he was surprised by how affectionate she was this day. Usually she would get uncomfortable when he would get all mushy with her, not liking the idea of them looking like a real couple. But on this day she let him behave as if they were in a real relationship and he had to admit that he rather liked the idea._

_"Speaking of kids, I can't stay much longer. I have to pick up a gift for Henry's birthday."_

_"That's his birthday?"_

_"It's in two days. I can't believe he is already turning ten. I still remember the day he was given to me. He was so tiny." She beamed, showing with her hands how tiny he was._

_To say that David was surprised would be an understatement. Regina sharing memories with him was rare. She must have been in a really good mood and he decided to take advantage of the situation to try and learn more about the usually mysterious woman. After all, he didn't know if he would ever get the chance again. "Why did you adopt him?"_

_She stared at him then and he wondered if he had maybe pushed too far. Even if she was in a sharing mood, that was a big question. He was ready to apologize when she finally spoke. "I was lonely."_

_The answer startled him. He hadn't been expecting this. Now he was curious. "And did it work?"_

_"What?"_

_"Did you still feel lonely?"_

_"A little bit. I love him. I've always loved him. But one person can't erase the feeling of loneliness I've always had. It was too much to ask of him. I realized that quickly."_

_"And did you try to have another kid then?"_

_"No. Adopting is a difficult process and I doubt they would have given me another child when I was already a single mother with a time-consuming job."_

_"But what about having one of your own? In the usual way, I mean."_

_She stared into space for a moment before whispering. "I can't."_

_He took her hand instinctively then, squeezing it. She looked sad. "I'm sorry."_

_She gave him a small smile, pulling back her hand and starting to climb off the stool. "Don't be. There is nothing you can do about it and I made peace with it. Henry is already quite a lot of work anyway. I have to go."_

_He watched her go in his room to grab her clothes and thought back to what she had just confessed to him. There was still a lot he didn't know about her and he was willing to find out more, but he had that unsettling feeling that he would only find out more pain. She always had these sad eyes when he caught her thinking about her past and he was afraid to ask why._

David was snapped back to the moment by Henry babbling about how he came to the conclusion that his mother was pregnant. "-and then I heard her crying in the bathroom. It was weird because mom never cries. Or at least I never see her cry. Maybe she cries, I don't know. Anyway I thought that it was weird so I tried to find out why. I heard her talk with some old lady but I couldn't figure out what they were saying. So I waited for them to go before going in the bathroom. And everything was normal except for that thing in the trashcan. I took it out and it was a pregnancy test. And it was positive." He stopped his rambling and turned to David, a lost look in his eyes. "My mother is pregnant. I'm going to have a brother, or a sister."

They had reached the school and David had yet to say a single word. He put the car into park and turned to Henry. He didn't know what to say, he didn't even know what to think. He didn't want to believe what the kid was telling him and he could see that Henry was overwhelmed by the situation and wanted him to say something. But he had no idea what to say. He suddenly realized that he had no experience with kids. No, Regina couldn't be pregnant.

He took a deep breath before talking. "Look, kid, you don't know for sure that she is pregnant." He raised his hand when he saw that Henry was about to interrupt him. "Yes, I know, what you saw makes it look like she is. But it could be something else. You don't know until she tells you something. So for now you hold on on talks about getting a sibling, okay? At least until she tells you herself. Understood?" He realized that he was trying to convince himself just as much as he was trying to convince Henry, and it wasn't really working. But Henry nodded anyway and opened the passenger door.

He turned back towards the car and looked like he had something else to say but finally decided against it. He waved towards David before running off to the school's gates. "See you at the game!"

But even as the boy had left, David couldn't find the strength to go. He just sat behind his wheel, his brain working on overdrive. What if Regina really was pregnant?


	8. Chapter 8

A/N: Hello everyone! Thank you so much for all the reviews and follows. It really helps with the writing, especially since I barely have the time to write right now. Spring break is over and med school is a lot of work. I love that you all want to know that the baby is David's but we won't really find out before a while (I know, I'm mean).

I hope you will like this chapter. It's mainly about Regina, David and Henry. Don't forget to tell me what you think, or what you would like to see in the following chapters! :)

* * *

**One week later -**

Regina watched Henry from the bleachers. He was running behind the ball, his shorts dirtied by the grass, and he had a huge smile on his face. It should have made her happy as a mother to see how much fun he seemed to be having, but she couldn't help but hurt a little at that smile, realizing that it had not once been directed at her in the past few months. And she knew that there was more to it than just her boy growing up. She had heard before that kids tended to pull away from their parents at some point but she could tell that this was something else entirely.

She thought back to the dinner that she had been supposed to have with him the previous week. She had been too upset by the news of her pregnancy and she had suddenly lost all courage to have a serious talk with Henry that same evening. Instead they had gone out to Granny's, since she hadn't even found the will to cook, and they had eaten in silence. Once home they had both gone straight to their rooms and no further words had been exchanged. And it was pretty much how every night had gone after that, except now they were eating at home and there wasn't even the constant buzz of the diner to cut through the uncomfortable silence between them. Only the noises of their forks and knives on the plates, sometimes covered by some questions about school and some brief answers. Nothing that resembled an actual conversation though.

Maybe she could try again, now that she had finally digested the news of being pregnant. Not that it didn't scare her anymore, but she had accepted it, even looking forward to holding her newborn in her arms.

She snapped out of her thoughts and turned her attention back to the game when she heard some parents applauding. She was met by the sight of Henry's dazzling smile and she couldn't help but look away when she saw that he hadn't even glanced at her after scoring a goal, when most children would have normally done it. She scanned the bleachers, looking at the citizens of Storybrooke in hope that she could find a friend to get her mind off of her broken relationship with her son. She was surprised to see David staring at her from the far off side of the bench she was sitting on. He quickly looked away when he saw that he had been caught. Regina frowned but thought nothing more of it.

The game continued in much the same fashion. She would try to focus on the game only to turn her gaze to the bleachers when she couldn't anymore. She always caught David staring at her and he always turned his head away.

It reminded her of the beginning of their relationship, except for the fact that then he would have hold her gaze.

_She had been attending the school play, along with most of Storybrooke's residents, and David was sitting on the other side of the theater. She had quickly spotted him and she could tell that he had quickly spotted her too. When Henry wasn't on stage she would stare at him and he would stare at her. Their eyes would lock and they would hold each other's gaze for a few minutes before focusing back on the play. They had played that game during the whole first act._

_But when she looked back to where he should have been sitting during the entr'acte, she couldn't help but feel disappointed at not seeing him in his spot. But she had assumed he had gone to the bathroom and chastised herself for caring._

_She jumped when she heard his voice right next to her. She instantly turned around to face him and was met by his striking blue eyes, whose effect on her seemed to be multiplied by the fact that they were way closer now._

_"Do you mind if I sit here?"_

_She shook her head no and he sat next to her. She blushed a little, instantly feeling pathetic for doing so. Their game of looking at each other through a crowd of people was very different from actually sitting next to each other and being able to talk. The staring had been innocent and she could tell that he was more serious now, something that she couldn't let happen. She didn't understand why he was making her so nervous. She was the Evil Queen, she didn't get nervous around men. Especially not around Charming._

_"Henry is great in this play, they should have given him a bigger role."_

_"Yes, they should have." She didn't add anything more and stared right in front of her._

_David smirked at the display. He wasn't oblivious to the fact that she was trying to make him go away. Usually he would have been his shy self and he would have taken the hint, but there was something about Regina that made him a little more adventurous. She was awakening a whole different side of him and he rather liked this new side. "How are things going at the hospital?"_

_She turned to him, surprised that he was still trying to engage conversation. It was probably a remainder of her time as the queen but generally people could sense her silent orders and would immediately obey them. And she was sure that he had gotten the one of her not wanting to talk to him, however subtle it may have been._

_She sighed. "What do you want, David?"_

_He grinned at her straightforwardness. There was truly nobody like her in Storybrooke. But two could play this game. "I want you to go out with me. Last night was really-"_

_She cut him off, shaking her head. "Last night was a mistake." Or at least that was the conclusion she had come to when she had reflected upon it. She had had too much to drink. She should never have accepted the drinks he had offered her, the smiles he had flashed her, the kisses he had given her and all that had happened afterwards._

_He almost gave up then, his shy persona gaining some ground. But something kept him going. Little did he know that it was his Prince Charming persona, the part of him that didn't give up and looked for some adventure. "I don't think so."_

_"I had too much to drink. I wasn't thinking straight."_

_"Then you should do that more often because I'm sure that you enjoyed it. More than you want to admit."_

_She was flabbergasted by his behavior This was not the same David she was used to seeing. There was something different about him and it annoyed her just as much as it excited her. The last one took over though and she decided that there was no harm in playing along. "So your advice is for me to spend the nights when Henry sleeps over at some friends drinking in some bar and going home with some random guy?"_

_"Not some random guy, me. And you can skip the drinking part too."_

_"Well, I don't know what you had tonight, David, but it made your head turn a little. I would suggest that you sleep it off."_

_He chuckled and rose. "Just think about it. I'm sure I'm not the only one who wants it." It was the end of the entr'acte and he went back to his seat, leaving behind a Regina lost in her thoughts. The next time their eyes met over the unknowing audience, she dropped her gaze and blushed. She really was considering starting something with Charming and she wondered which part of her wanted this the most. Was it the naive girl looking for some love or was it the Evil Queen glad that she had found a new way to get revenge on Snow? She couldn't tell and it unnerved her._

But everything was different now, and their stolen glances didn't have the same meaning. She wished she could understand their new meaning though. There was something weird about his stare, as if he was looking for the answer to some question. But she had no idea what the question was and she didn't feel like confronting him today. There was still the fact that he might be the father of the child she was carrying hanging over her head and she didn't know how to deal with it.

She sighed in relief when the referee announced the end of the game. If it had gone on any longer she might have actually gone crazy.

She slowly descended the stairs of the bleachers to get to Henry. David had been quicker than her and he was already congratulating Henry when she reached them. She knew that, just like her, David hadn't really been paying that much attention to the game, but they both lied to Henry, telling him that they hadn't missed any of it.

Henry smiled at them in response, but he knew that it wasn't true. He had looked up to the bleachers from time to time and he had noticed the weird glances between his mother and David. Even now he could still feel an awkward tension between them. He wanted to observe them interact with each other a little more so as to figure out what was really going on, but apparently he was the only one because David quickly announced that he had to go. He hugged Henry and nodded in the direction of Regina before scampering off.

Mother and son left the field shortly after, both their minds working overtime. Regina had made the decision of speaking to Henry at dinner tonight about how the awkwardness between them needed to disappear, and she was trying to figure out what to tell him exactly so as to not antagonize him any further. It proved difficult.

On the other side of the car Henry was trying to figure out what was really going on between the Evil Queen and Prince Charming. There was that time when he had caught them fighting, then the fact that they had been avoiding each other ever since. And also the fact that he had seen David visibly tense when he had told him that Regina might be pregnant, even though he had tried to conceal it. And now the weird staring on the bleachers. There was definitely a lot of things to make sense of, and Henry had made it its job to figure it out.

* * *

Later that evening they were both sitting around the dining table, picking at their food without really eating it. Regina decided to break the silence first, since after all she was the one who wanted to have a conversation. "Are you okay, Henry?"

He snapped his head towards her, frazzled at the question. "Yeah, I'm fine."

He was still frowning and Regina could see quite well that her conversation opener was poorly picked. She tried to explain it further. "You've seemed troubled lately. You know you can talk to me about everything, right?"

He almost snorted at that but thought better of it. There was definitely a lot of thing he couldn't talk about with her. He returned his attention to his food and nodded. "Yes, I know." There was another silence as she had gone back to her food too. They were both trying to figure out what to say next. Eventually Henry decided that if he wanted some answers to his questions, he had to take her up on her offer, even if he knew she wouldn't be expecting what he said next. "Am I going to get a little sister or brother?"

Regina's head instantly snapped upwards, her eyebrows raising to the roof. She certainly hadn't been expecting that and she wondered if the question was really random or if Henry knew more than she thought. She tried to ease her features back into a neutral expression. "What do you mean?"

"I saw the pregnancy test in your bathroom. David told me not to mention it unless you wanted to talk about it but it's already been one week and you obviously won't tell me anything."

"David?" It was becoming harder to school her features.

"Yeah, I told him when I found out. But it doesn't matter, what I want to know is: is it true? Are you going to have a baby?"

She wanted to yell at him._ Yes it mattered, of course it mattered._ How could he have told David about it? And it had already been one week? She suddenly understood the glances on the bleachers. How could she have not known that? And why hadn't David told her anything? He could have told her that he knew. Anger replaced her previous confusion. It was an emotion she knew well and one she would easily revert to when things got too out of hand. Anger was easy.

"Mom?" Henry was a little bit scared by the look in his mother's eyes. He could see something rising in them and he was afraid of what it could be.

Regina quickly shut her eyes and shook her head to gain back some control over her emotions. She couldn't blow up like that in front of Henry. When she opened her eyes again she looked calmer. She took a deep breath and looked straight at her son. "Yes, you're going to get a sibling."

Henry smiled at the news. He had always wanted to have a little sister or brother to play with and he was glad that he hadn't just imagined it, that it was truly happening. Regina smiled back at him, surprised to see how well he was taking the news. But eventually his smile died out as a question burned his lips. "Who is the father?"

Regina's smile died out too. It had been wishful thinking to think that this question wouldn't come up. It was the first question people asked when they found out that someone apparently single was pregnant. But she couldn't tell her son the truth, not when he was already hating her. "There is no father."

His face fell at her answer. For a moment he had thought that she would be honest with him and now she was lying again. "I'm ten, mom, I'm not stupid. I know that there need to be a father." She didn't respond and he could see the sadness in her eyes. The wheels in his brain started turning really fast and suddenly he gasped. "It's David, isn't it?" Once again she didn't answer but he could see the wetness in her eyes. "Oh my god, it is. It's David."

"It's... complicated." She really didn't know what else to say. What was the use of denying it anyway? She preferred him thinking it was David's rather than Gold's anyway.

"What do you mean it's complicated?" Something passed in her eyes and if he had been in a clearer state of mind he would have explored it further, but right now he wasn't in a clear state of mind and everything was confused in his head. He jumped out off his chair and started shaking his head trying to get rid of all the things going through it. "But no. It's not possible. The Evil Queen can't have a child with Prince Charming." He heard his mother gasp and realized he had said it out loud. His hand immediately flew out to his mouth.

Regina tried to keep herself under control when she heard him. It had only been murmured and she wondered if she had heard right. "What did you just say?"

"Nothing." He ran to his room then, slamming the door behind him and burying himself under the covers. He couldn't believe he had let it slip.

In the living room, Regina wasn't doing any better. She couldn't believe he had said that. How did he know? And for how long had he known? It seemed as if her world had decided to crash down on her and all in one evening.

It certainly explained why Henry had pulled away from her. If he knew that she was the Evil Queen how could he even stand to be in her presence? A sudden wave of self-loathing washed over her and she buried her face in her hands, elbows resting on the hardwood table. She let the tears flow freely on her cheeks and the sobs rack her body.

She was losing her little boy because of her past and it hurt deeply. It was what she had always feared but she had let herself love him all the same. Maybe she should have listened to her mother, maybe love was weakness. But no, she refused to believe that. No matter how bad she was feeling right now, she had cared for Henry deeply and it had brought her more happiness than she would ever have imagined.

She just didn't know what to do anymore. She couldn't go up to him and admit to all her crimes. If she wanted the curse intact she couldn't have him knowing the truth. She was done with trusting people with her secrets. It had only brought her misery. So she was stuck, not wanting to call him crazy either.

She just wept silently at her dining room table until her eyes had no tears left to spill. She walked to her bedroom then, broken, and buried herself in its darkness. Only her hand on her stomach managed to soothe her. There was a child growing in there. After all these years, she was with child. It was this thought that made her fall asleep with a smile on her face. She would have plenty of time later to deal with everything. She would find a solution.


	9. Chapter 9

A/N: Once again I'm so sorry for the long wait! I'll try not to let you two weeks without a chapter next time. It's just that I'm still not done with my exams, so I'm really busy but I love to write this story. I hope you will like this chapter. I know that personally I really like it, and I've thought about it for a long time. I also hope that you won't find David's reaction at the end too far-fetched. Anyway, I'm really glad for all of you guys continuing to read this story and just know that I still have a lot planned out!

Enjoy and don't forget to review. I certainly do need it in that awful studying period. :)

* * *

**A few days later - **

Regina looked over the corridor before entering the hospital room. Confident that nobody had seen her, she closed the door and went straight to the examination bed. She was already twelve weeks along in her pregnancy and she knew that it was time for her first ultrasound. She needed to make sure her baby was healthy. However she still had troubles with openly announcing that she was pregnant, so she had decided to do it on her own.

She quickly realized that it was going to prove difficult, but still she couldn't imagine going to Whale or any other person in the hospital and ask for an ultrasound. This was too personal and she was sure that once she told someone in the hospital, the whole building would know about it. Hospitals were like the best place to gossip since you basically lived there as a big family. A family who loved gossip.

And she couldn't have people knowing when she still hadn't told David or Gold. Of course David already knew but still, it would hurt him more if everybody knew (and officially he wouldn't be supposed to know) instead of just Henry having found out because he was her son. And she didn't want to hurt him, this was the whole point of breaking up with him. Or at least that's what she was telling herself. Because deep down maybe the reason why she had pushed him away was because she wouldn't let herself fall in love with someone like she had with Daniel. She wasn't ready to go through all the pain that it had brought her again.

But she brushed these thoughts away and focused on the task at hands. She spread some gel on her belly and grabbed the probe but quickly got it tangled in all of the wires. Just as she was trying to make sense of it, the door flew open. She quickly hid her stomach with her scrubs but there was no mistaking what she was doing and she knew it. It had been a reflex more than anything else. One that she regretted now that the gel that she had used was sticking to her scrubs.

She turned towards the door to see a very surprised Whale who couldn't find his words. He had wanted to ask her something about one of their patients and a nurse had directed him to this room. However he hadn't expected her to be alone and obviously examining herself and not a patient.

Regina sighed. She knew that he wouldn't let it go. But maybe it wasn't so bad, she had needed someone to help her anyway and it would go faster this way. And he was bound to find out sooner or later. "Could you close the door, please?"

He nodded slowly and did as he was told before moving towards his friend, still trying to process what was happening.

She didn't wait too long before uncovering her belly once again and handing the probe to Whale. He automatically grabbed it but didn't make any use out of it. He just stared at her with disbelief, looking for a baby bump that was still invisible. Not for much longer though. She would have to tell people eventually. "You're pregnant?"

She gestured towards the ultrasound machine. "Well, why don't you see for yourself."

He did as he was told and soon they could both see it on the screen. They both gasped. Whale because he still hadn't processed that she was indeed pregnant. And Regina because it was one thing to know that you were pregnant, but it was completely different to see it for yourself. She couldn't believe that it was real, that it was really her baby that she was seeing. Of course it didn't resemble an actual baby yet but she knew how to read an ultrasound and for her it was just as real as holding her newborn. She could feel the tears prick at the corner of her eyes.

Eventually Whale smiled. "I guess congratulations are in order then. You have one beautiful and healthy baby."

She smiled. Seeing her baby was one good way to lift her spirits. "Thank you."

He looked at the screen once more. "You're what... twelves weeks along?"

"More or less, yes."

"When did you find out?"

"Two weeks ago."

He put the machine away and gave her something to wipe off the gel. He observed her when she took it. "I'm guessing you haven't told anyone yet."

She finished what she was doing and met his eyes. It was always surprising to see how much he knew her. "Henry found out. But except for that, no, not really."

"How did he react?" He was genuinely curious. He knew that their relationship was kind of strained at the moment and he wondered if it could maybe help mend it. Regina had already told him that Henry wanted siblings. However he could see by the shadow passing in her eyes that it didn't go so well and it made his heart clench for his friend.

"I don't really know. At first he was happy. Really happy. But then he started asking questions about the father and... it didn't go so well."

"Do I know him?" He hadn't even started thinking about the father yet. It was already surprising enough for Regina to be pregnant, that he hadn't even gotten to that point yet. But now that he was thinking about it, he wondered who it could be. He realized once more that he didn't know much about her personal life.

"Probably. But... it's complicated." He raised one eyebrow expectantly and she sighed. "I don't really know who the father is."

At that he laughed, his tone playful. "Ah, so you do have slutty ways, I've always wondered."

She could have been upset with his reaction but somehow she found it better than the ones she could have expected. You could always count on Whale to lighten the mood and this was definitely a situation that needed lightening up. She laughed along with him. "Well, there are only two possibilities. It could have been worse. Fortunately I stopped sleeping with Graham when I started seeing David."

"I knew it! That bloody sheriff kept telling me that I was imagining things but I was right."

Regina laughed once again. She had missed it. "He was fun to play with."

"I'm fun to play with too." Whale wiggled his eyebrows and she rolled her eyes.

"It will never happen, Whale. I work with you. I think I'm going to stop playing around for a while anyway."

"Yeah, too bad." He winced when she slapped his arm but it was more for show than anything else. She sat up on the bed and he sat by her feet. "So. It could be David. He is the vet, right?"

"Yes."

"That's weird. I didn't imagine him to be the kind of guy going for casual sex."

"He is not." She had quickly come to realize that. At first she had thought it could work and it wouldn't be a problem, and then it had been too late to stop everything before it got a little bit too serious.

Whale was surprised but he didn't push further and decided to store the information away for another time. "So, there is David. And the other one?"

She winced. "Gold."

At that his eyebrows hit the roof and his eyes bulged out. If he had been holding something he would have dropped it. "_Gold_?"

"Yeah, I know."

"But... how? why?"

"I don't know. It just sort of happened. I screwed up. Big time."

He was ready to go further and tell her how bad it really was, but he realized that it wouldn't help. He could see that she was well aware that sleeping with the most manipulative and powerful man in town had been a mistake. Though he had to admit that if someone could stand up to him, it was Regina. He had never understood why Regina was the only one who wasn't scared of him. But still, she hated him. Probably even more than they all did. He couldn't get over the fact that she had slept with him. This was definitely something he didn't want to think about. There was something really unsettling about the pawn shop owner and he hated the fact that Regina got mixed up in it.

But right now she didn't need a lecture and he knew it. She needed someone to tell her that everything would be okay and he was ready to be that someone. He was ready to be her friend. So instead of yelling, he laid his hand on her bare foot and started rubbing and squeezing it in a comforting way. "It's okay. You'll figure it out. You're the strongest woman I know. If there is one person who can deal with this situation, it's you."

She rolled her eyes but he could tell by the fact that she wasn't moving her foot away that she appreciated the comfort. She just wouldn't admit it. "Sappy much?"

"Even the greatest men have their flaws."

"Oh, believe me being sappy is far from being your worst flaw."

"What do you say if instead of talking about my many flaws, I go and grab you some scrubs that aren't all sticky?"

"I would say that it's a great plan."

He squeezed her foot one last time before getting on his feet and going for the door. Just as he was about to turn the doorknob he heard her calling for him. He turned to see her smile at him. "Thank you."

"Anytime." He smiled and left the room.

Regina was left in there with her smile still on and a picture of her baby that Whale had printed for her. After a few minutes she heard the door being opened. "You may have many flaws but making people wait is definitely not one of them. How did you-". She was cut short when she saw who had actually opened the door. "David."

He carefully took a few steps forward and closed the door behind him. He looked around him and saw the ultrasound machine and Regina sitting on the bed, holding a picture. "So, you really are pregnant."

She just nodded, not knowing what to say. She hadn't expected to see him here. How come everybody just knew where she was? She would have to talk to the nurses about that. She was allowed to have some privacy, no?

His brows furrowed. "But I thought- You told me you couldn't have children."

"I can't. I don't really know how it happened." She looked at her hands then, her gaze resting on the picture of her baby. She had no idea how it happened, but she was happy it did.

He followed her gaze and even though he couldn't make out the picture from where he was standing, his heart rate accelerated all the same. "You're keeping it?"

She looked at him then. "Yes."

"Why didn't you tell me?" She didn't say anything and he could feel all the emotions he had bottled up starting to spill. "Regina, if you're going to have my baby, I want to be a part of its life. I don't care about what's going on between us. I deserve to know. Why didn't you tell me?" She still wasn't answering and he started to raise his voice, the frustration clear. He approached her and grab her by the shoulders, forcing her to look at him. "Why didn't you tell me, Regina?" But she just shook her head and tears started running down her cheeks. He shook her more forcefully. "Why?"

That's when she snapped and started yelling. "Because I don't know if it's yours!"

There was a big silence that followed her words. He dropped her shoulders as if he was burned and took two steps back, staring at her tear-streaked face. He felt like he had been stabbed. They had never talked about being exclusive but he had always assumed they were.

He looked at her a little longer before finally finding the strength to talk. "When?"

"When _what_?"

"When did you sleep with someone else?"

She could feel his anger seeping through and she knew that the answer would hurt him. But she didn't see the point in lying anymore so she just blurted it out all the same. "The day you gave me the keys."

His breathing stopped. All he could see was red. How could she have done that? The whole day he had been thinking about their relationship and how he had told her he loved her, how he was hoping that he hadn't ruined it all and that one day she would say it back. And meanwhile she had been sleeping with someone else? He wanted to punch something. But he knew it wouldn't solve anything, and the last thing he needed was for Regina to have to take care of his broken hand, so he took a few deep breaths to try and calm himself down.

After a few minutes it seemed to have worked. "Who was it?"

Regina opened the eyes she had kept closed then, meeting his hurt ones. Once again she preferred telling him the truth. Better all at once. Then he would be hurt but eventually he would get over it. Nothing good would come out of him finding out later. "Gold."

The breathing exercises did nothing this time. "_Gold_? You slept with _Gold_? But you hate him. I think he is the only person in Storybrooke that you openly hate. Why would you sleep with him?" It didn't make any sense. His anger was quickly replaced by confusion. He had told her he loved her, given her the keys to his apartment, and she had run to the most hated man in town, a man she couldn't stand, and she had slept with him? How could that make any sense?

She was still sobbing but she managed to talk through it. "I don't know. It was stupid. I don't know why I did it."_ Because the evil queen always ruins everything_, she thought. But blaming it on her evil twin seemed like a bad excuse. Especially since she was just as much the evil queen as she was Regina. She wasn't entirely blameless in this.

He looked at her then, really looked at her. She was devastated. He could tell that she regretted it, even more than he would ever regret it. Something clicked in him. "You were afraid. Afraid that our relationship could really go somewhere, so you tried ruining it."

"I didn't try, I did ruin it."

"No."

She looked up, confused. "What do you mean, no?"

"I still love you, Regina. I know that you're still scared to hear it but I still love you. What you did doesn't matter. I can't erase the feelings I have for you. You could do a lot of abominable things and I would still love you. I may be a fool because of it, but that doesn't change the fact that it's true. I'm going to be angry for a while about that thing with Gold, especially since he might be the father of your child, a child that I want to raise with you, but I'll get over it. I just hope that we can have a life together when I do. That you will stop running from me and finally admit that you have just as much feelings for me as I have for you."

Regina watched him, mouth slightly agape. Her cries had stopped and she couldn't believe what he was telling her. Especially when he was telling her, without knowing it, that he didn't care about what she had done before, when she was the evil queen. That he would still love her. She wondered if he would say the same thing if he knew exactly what kind of abominable things he was referring to.

It meant more to her than him wanting for them to raise the baby together. That she could easily imagine. Prince Charming still loving her after all the bad things she could do was something she couldn't imagine.

She didn't have anything to say after such a declaration, and thankfully she didn't have to as Whale entered the room with the scrubs he had gone looking for. He was slightly surprised by the sight of a teary-eyed Regina facing the vet he barely knew. He didn't know why but it made him a little protective. He went to stand beside Regina and laid a hand on her shoulder. "Everything's okay here?"

She nodded and grabbed the shirt he was holding. David and Whale stared at each other for a while, trying to assess how much the other cared for the brunette. Eventually David nodded to Whale before making his way towards the door. Before leaving he turned towards Regina one last time. "I meant everything I said. I still love you, Regina. I'll have you whenever you'll have me. Just give me some time and then come and see me. I'll be waiting for you." And with that he exited the room.

Regina sighed and suddenly realized how uncomfortable her sticky shirt was. She quickly pulled it off and put on the one Whale had brought instead.

He waited for her to be done with it before talking. "So you told him everything?"

"Yes."

"And he still wants to be with you?"

"Yes."

"Well, I would say you got your prince Charming."

"That I did." She couldn't help but smile at the double entendre. She was starting to think that maybe letting David in wouldn't be so bad. Maybe he wouldn't leave her as soon as her evil persona would show. Maybe they could make something together.


	10. Chapter 10

_A/N : I have good news for you, most of my exams are done so I should be able to update more frequently. The English one was a fun one. Mrs Levitt made an appearance. We had to write a dialog between a patient and a doctor and I couldn't help myself. I almost called the doctor Dr Mills but thought I would get too off topic if I did._

_Anyway I really want to thank you for all of your reviews on the previous chapter! It really helped putting me in a good mood for my exams and for that chapter too. I always love hearing what you think. I hope you'll enjoy this chapter as well and I hope you won't find the end too mushy. Be warned though, it's extra fluffy._

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Coming out of the O.R., Regina immediately went for her phone, letting out a frustrated sigh when she saw that she had no missed calls or new text messages. David was probably waiting for her to make the first step, or maybe he still needed some time. She had no idea and once again she silently cursed him for not being specific enough. She could understand that he needed some time, but how much?

And the fact that it frustrated her so much unnerved her even more. Why was she so desperate for him to call her? A few weeks ago she had been the one pushing him away and being all unreachable. And now what? Now she wanted to go back to the way things were before she broke it off? Pretend that it all never happened and that she had absolutely no doubts about their relationship?

It would be a big lie. She still had plenty of doubts. But she couldn't deny that his little speech in the examination room had done its effect. Ever since that day it had become harder and harder to convince herself that staying away from him was a good thing. And now, she wasn't even sure she found it even remotely true. She often found herself dreaming about going to his door and just throw herself in his arms. He would hold her and never let her go and everything would be alright.

She scoffed at such a notion. It didn't look much like the dreams of an evil queen. But then, had she ever been the stereotypical evil queen? There were many more layers to the character than what the fairytales of this land and hers implied. There were certain days when she wasn't even sure she understood herself, so how could some distant fairytales do any better?

She absentmindedly greeted Whale when she entered the break room and went to sit at the table in the middle of it. Both elbows on the table, she stared at her phone for a while before finally starting typing furiously.** "You know, when you ask for someone to give you time, the smart thing to do might be to tell them exactly how much. They are no soothsayer."** She then put back her phone on the table and stared at it again, wondering if she had maybe been a little too abrupt. She hesitated for a while before typing a second text. **"I'm sorry if that sounded a little bit rough. I just wish you would have given me some more precise time limits. Regina."**

Whale looked on curiously at the display. It was a new side of Regina. She looked nervous and it meant a lot coming from the woman. He had always known her to have nerves of steel. She would always walk into the operating room with a confident smile on her face, no matter how challenging the procedure was. She was never nervous. It was something he had often envied. But life hadn't given him that chance and he had taken to drinking whenever he was nervous. Probably a bad habit, but it worked for him.

He was about to enquire about what made her so nervous when her phone buzzed. She immediately picked it up and he held off on his question, preferring studying her for a little while longer as she seemed oblivious to his presence.

**"I'm starting to wish I had too. David."** She frowned. What did he mean by that?

Seeing as she seemed frozen in thought, Whale went to stand behind her and read the conversation over her shoulder. He smirked when he saw it was from David's. He should have guessed that the veterinarian would have been the one to make Regina nervous. David seemed to have gotten to her like nobody else had before.

He looked at Regina's puzzled face with amusement before finally breaking the silence. "I think that it means he is ready for you to come knocking on his door."

She gasped and jumped on her chair, certainly not expecting for Whale to be just behind her. She immediately turned towards him, dropping her phone on the table. "What?"

"David. He wants you back. Now."

She glared at him, appalled. "One, this is none of your business. And two, how do you know?"

He decided to brush off her attempt at making him feel guilty about butting in. "You might have hurt his feelings when you slept with Gold but he still loves you. He admitted as much the other day. And a man in love can only go so long without the woman he loves before wanting her back. Especially when she has been ignoring him for months beforehand."

She nodded slowly, a little surprised by Whale's input, but glad she had someone to help her decipher the situation. It might be a load of crap, but right now she was ready to believe anything. "And why doesn't he call me then?"

"If I recall correctly he told you that he would be waiting for you when you would be ready. He doesn't want you to feel cornered. He is a smart man."

She sighed. "Right now, he is just a frustrating man."

"You don't believe me?"

"I don't know."

He took advantage of the fact that she was staring into space again to grab her phone and he walked away quickly with it before she could snatch it back. He started typing and she quickly rose from her chair. "What the hell do you think you're doing?"

Just as she was about to grab it from his right hand, he switched it to his left hand and pressed the send button. "Showing you that I'm right."

She reached for the phone one more time and he let her have it this time, having already done what he meant to do. She quickly went to see the text he had sent, her heart pounding fast in her chest. **"Do you still need more time? Regina."**

She was about to argue some more with Whale, ready to yell at him for his unwanted interference, but her phone buzzed. Both their gaze directed themselves at the screen as David's answer could be seen. **"No."**

Whale didn't get the chance to comment on the fact that he had been right though because the phone buzzed again. It was probably better that way. **"You?"**

Regina took a deep breath, having forgotten all about the anger that she had been directing at Whale moments ago. Her heart fluttered in anticipation at what her answer would mean. Eventually she typed the two letters that would change everything. **"No."**

When her phone buzzed again, her heart missed a beat, while at the same time she was chastising herself because it was stupid to get so worked up about words on a blank screen, right? **"Where are you?"**

**"The hospital. You?"**

**"I'll be there in two minutes. Meet me downstairs?"**

She didn't even answer and ran through the door, leaving Whale alone in the room. He smiled to himself. He was glad that she had found somebody to love. It just hurt a little that it hadn't been him. Not that he had ever envisioned it happening but during some lonely nights he had dreamed of it, even if he knew that they would never be more than friends. All in all he was glad that she had found someone who could make her happy anyway. She deserved it and if it meant it could see this open side of her more often, then he would welcome it without a doubt.

* * *

Just as Regina reached the lobby she saw David passing through the hospital doors. Everything seemed to stop when their eyes met. They suddenly started running again towards each other and crashed into one another, Regina wrapping her small arms around his neck, and David wrapping his strong ones around her waist. Their lips met in a passionate kiss and people around them started whistling and cheering.

"You go, Dr Mills!" came from one of the less shy nurses. However they both broke the kiss when they realized where they were. But they didn't want to get out of their loving embrace so instead they just rested their foreheads against each other, chuckling at the cheers coming the nurses' station.

The evil queen would have mocked the display. It was something the young and naive Regina would have done, not the powerful sorceress. But maybe it was a good thing. After all she had been happier as her young self. Channeling some of that childish faith in love again couldn't be all that bad.

As she could hear some comments erupting from the nurses' station, she chuckled against David's lips. They weren't touching but they were just inches from each other and he could feel everything, which warmed his insides. He almost moaned from the sensation of the air escaping her lips and it got ten times more difficult to control when she talked and he could hear that voice he had always loved and missed so much. "I think we just gave them something to gossip about for the next month. They'll never let me live that one down."

They both laughed and he didn't dare remind her that it would be ten times worse when they would find out that she was pregnant. Which, considering how far along she was, was going to happen sooner rather than later. She was going to show eventually and he couldn't wait for it to happen. He had the feeling that she was going to be the most beautiful pregnant woman he had ever seen, not that he really remembered having already seen one, but still. She would be glowing.

She grew a little bit more serious for a few seconds, as the situation finally dawned on her. "You know that we still have a lot of things to talk about, right?"

He smiled, hoping that they could do all of that without too much tension. He knew that there were still a few issues that they had to resolve. "Yes, I know. We can even do it right now if you want to."

She shook her head and smiled playfully. "No, I have other plans for right now."

He could see right through her and was more than happy about it but he played along anyway. "Ah. And what could that be?"

She smirked then. "Have you ever seen an on-call room?"

His smile turned playful too, but he kept his innocent tone. "No, I can't say that I have."

"Well, we'll have to fix that then." She didn't let him the chance to respond before grabbing his hand and directing them towards an on-call room away from prying eyes. She didn't need any more gossips about her going around the hospital.

After entering she locked the door behind them and stared at David. The room was a little bit dark but they could still see each other so they didn't bother with the light. David was staring at her expectantly, waiting for her to make the first move. He had a good idea on why she had locked them in this room but he could always have misinterpreted. Regina was a difficult woman to read and he was all too aware of what his mistakes could lead to.

However there was almost nothing left to misinterpret when she took off her shirt, her eyes still locked on his. He let his gaze fall to the skin she had uncovered. She was even more beautiful than in his memories. But it wasn't what caught his breath. No. What took away all of his air was the small baby bump he could see.

He slowly got closer to her and placed both his hands on her stomach, trying to take it all in. She was carrying his baby. Of course, there was still a chance that it might be Gold's but he had decided that he didn't care about that. In his mind it was his baby. It was the child he would raise with Regina and even if it wasn't genetically his, it would still be his child all the same.

She watched him stare at the hands he had placed on her stomach for a few minutes. She was still a little bit afraid about his reaction to the baby but it all disappeared when she saw a huge smile appearing on his lips and the moisture in his eyes. She put her hands on his then and he raised his head to meet her gaze, keeping his hands underneath hers.

The love they could see in each other's gaze was almost too much to bare. There was so much of it and they still weren't ready to admit at least half of it. Love for each other. Love for the baby. Love for what their life could be.

So Regina did the first thing she could think of and kissed David, closing her eyes while doing so. If they had stared at each other any longer, she didn't know what she would have done. She probably would have crumbled under the weight of such feelings. She couldn't bare the thought of loving someone so much and being loved in return. It was scary. It reminded her of the love she had with Daniel and all the pain that went with it. Maybe she didn't think that love was a weakness anymore, but she still thought that it brought on a lot of pain and her first reaction would be to flee.

Except this time fleeing wasn't an option. She had tried and it hadn't worked. But she couldn't really blame herself when it felt so good to be in David's embrace. When his fingers roamed over her whole body. When his nose was brushing against her nose. When his lips were trailing over her jaw. No, she definitely couldn't blame herself.

Soon clothes were discarded and all she could think about was how much she had missed him. She just wished that things could always be as easy as when it was only the two of them in a dark room together, stripped of their past just as easily as they were of their clothes and unaware of all the pressure the world waiting outside was putting on them. Unaware of the son who would never understand. Unaware of the man who would always try to manipulate her. Unaware of the woman she never wanted to be again.

When it was just the two of them, David and Regina, and nothing else.


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N : Hey everyone! I'm getting better at not leaving you waiting for too long. Once again thanks for the reviews, it's always encouraging. Surprisingly for once I don't have anything to write here so enjoy! :)**

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They were just coming down from their high when they heard a knock on the door. They both stilled, hoping that it was just someone wanting to use the room. They would probably leave once they understood that it was occupied. However they weren't that lucky. "Regina? I know you're in there."

She groaned and rolled over, reaching for her scrubs and panties. She walked towards the door but didn't open it, still hoping that he would go away. "What do you want, Whale?"

"Ms Blanchard is looking for you. It's about that thing she wanted to organize with the children at the hospital. I don't really know much about it so I told her I was going to try and find you."

"Can't you tell her that I'm busy at the moment?" Mary-Margaret was definitely the last person with whom she wanted to deal right now. She didn't miss the irony in the fact that it was Snow White who was interrupting their reunion though. She would almost have laughed at that but she remembered that David was watching her every reaction from the bed and this was one she wasn't looking forward to explain.

"I guess I can, yes. I'll just don't tell her that being busy actually means reuniting with an old lover. You're not actually being quiet in here, Regina. That's not very professional."

Regina instantly blushed. She could see that Whale was teasing her, she could almost picture his smirk on the other side of the door and she wanted to smack it right off his face. But she quickly recovered, glad for the door between them. "Are you quite done with it, dear, or was there something else you wanted?"

"I've never pegged you for much of a screamer, that's all. But I'll leave you two to it then. Have fun!"

She rolled her eyes and turned towards David who was trying to stifle a laugh. She raised an eyebrow and placed her hands on her hips, clearly trying to look intimidating. "What?"

But it didn't get the expected effect. He just laughed at her antics and she wondered if she had lost all the power she had as the evil queen, or if it was just that they both knew her too much. She had never let people get as close to her in the Enchanted Forest as she had let them get here. She was starting to realize that power didn't really matter, she didn't need it to be happy. As a matter of fact she was perfectly happy with people not being afraid of her. Especially people she wanted to call her friends. Or more than her friend in David's case.

"Nothing. It's just that he is right. You truly are surprising when it comes to the bedroom."

She just rolled her eyes and went to sit next to him. If only he knew how much more surprising she could be. They still had no idea of who she had been. It was better this way though.

He stared at her for a few minutes before sitting up. "Should I understand from you blowing off Whale that you want us to talk now?"

"I guess, yes."

"Okay. So let's start with the easy problems first then. Are we dating?"

She turned towards him, eyebrows raised. "This is part of the easy problems?"

"Well, considering the other things we need to talk about, I would say yes. So? Are we dating?"

She couldn't miss the hope in his voice. She knew he had wanted that from the start. He had tried taking her to dinner, inviting her over for a movie, or other things normal couples do, but she had never wanted to admit that they could be a couple. When he was too persistent she would say yes, but she would direct them in the direction of the bathroom or any other discreet place and they would go back to what their meetings usually entailed. For her it had always been sex and nothing more.

However she knew that she couldn't keep up with that now. Not when she had finally realised that there was so much more between them. Not when there was a big chance that she would have his baby in less than six months.

"I guess we are, yes."

His face suddenly lighted up. "Are you sure? We are officially dating? As in I can take you to Granny's for dinner and we can hold hands in public?"

"Well, I would appreciate it if you would pick a restaurant a little bit fancier that Granny's and I'm not really one for public display of affection, but yes. We are officially dating."

His heart swelled with her words and he couldn't help his hand coming up to meet her chin and his lips reaching for a sweet kiss. It was loving and so different from the passionate kisses they shared in the throes of passion. Her lips parted and he accepted the invitation eagerly, trying to pour all his love into the kiss. Trying to show her that she didn't need to be so nervous about them dating, that it was meant to be that way.

Eventually they parted for air but their eyes never left each other, communicating much more than words ever could. Once they had restored some personal space between each other, David tried to tackle another problem. "Does this mean that we have to tell Henry?"

Regina's eyes suddenly lost all the light that they had had after their kiss. For a moment she had forgotten that Henry would never accept her dating David. After their failed dinner, they had grown even more distant and she had tried to find out how he had figured that she was the Evil Queen and that David was Prince Charming. She had searched his room, no matter how horrible it made her feel to violate his privacy in this way, and eventually she had found the book. The book that recounted all the tales of the Enchanted Forest but in that naive light that only the good side could have. There were so many parts of her life that were missing from it and she appeared even crueller that she really had been. This was definitely not how she wanted Henry to see her and she wondered how he had made the connection. She was nothing like that now, was she?

David noticed the sadness in Regina's empty eyes and slumped shoulders and he draped his arm around her back to try and comfort her. "What's going on?"

She debated telling him the truth. It would make it even more real. But some part of her wanted to tell him. She knew that he was the only one who could make her feel better. So she looked at her hands and started talking. "We had a fight a few weeks ago. He found out about me being pregnant and I don't know why but he immediately assumed that you were the father. And he didn't like it."

A lonesome tear escaped her eye and rolled off her cheek. "Somehow in his head you're Prince Charming and I'm-" Her voice broke and a sob escaped her. She had been right, it made it all the more real. "And I'm the Evil Queen. And he thinks I'm plotting something or whatever and... He hates me, David. My son hates me."

She buried herself against his chest and he tightened his arms around her, not understanding how the sweet boy that he knew so well could hurt his mother that much. Every sob went straight to his heart and he wished he could take all of the hurt away. "Shhh. It's okay. You're not the Evil Queen."

She almost snorted at that. Of course she was the Evil Queen. It hurt but she knew that it was the truth. What she couldn't handle was her son turning on her. But again, could she really blame him? If they found out who she was, would they all turn on her like Henry had? David had told her that all of the bad things she did didn't matter, that he would always love her. But would he still say that when he would find out the exact extent of what she had done? He would remember his wife and hate her for separating them, his promise of a never-ending love long forgotten.

But she couldn't go down that road. She wouldn't. It was too painful. She gripped his shirt harder and tried to stop sobbing. It was unbefitting of a queen. Not that she was one anymore, that much was clear, but some habits were hard to get rid of. She could still hear her mother's voice in her head and it was enough to keep the sobs at bay, no matter how hard to fight her hormones were. "It doesn't matter if I'm the Evil Queen or not, what matters is that he hates me."

"He doesn't hate you. How could he? You're a great mother to him. This is probably just a phase, just a book he read. It will go away."

"What if it doesn't? He doesn't talk to me anymore and I feel like everything I do makes him even angrier at me. I don't know what to do anymore. He will hate me even more for dating you."

"I'll talk to him. We'll figure it out. I promise you." He had no idea what he was going to say but he knew that he had to at least try. Henry listened to him most of the time. Or at least he used to think that he did, because apparently he hadn't listened to him when he had asked him not to question his mother about her pregnancy until she was ready.

She wiped her tears away and pulled herself out of his embrace, choosing to press her right side against his left side instead. She rested her head on his shoulder, comforted by his body heat. "Thank you." She was pretty sure it wouldn't help but she hoped it would anyway. She didn't have that many more options and she could only hope that Henry would understand that she wasn't forcing David into anything. And if Prince Charming was fine with dating the Evil Queen, how could she be so evil? But that was just hopeful thinking.

"And while I do that, you should talk to Gold." She immediately tensed and he hated himself for bringing it up but he had to. It was making him just as uncomfortable as it was making her, but he knew they would have to get over it sooner or later. There was no changing the situation they were in and they'd better accept it and try to do the right thing. "I assume you still haven't told him and he deserves to know. God knows I hate the man but he might be the father and if he wants to be a part of this child's life, we can't refuse him that right."

"I know but I truly don't want him anywhere near my child." An awkward silence followed her words. There was that unsaid _'then you shouldn't have slept with him'_ hanging around but neither one of them wanted to address it.

The only thing they could do was trying to move past it. "He can't be that bad. Sure he doesn't appear to be the friendliest guy in town, but I'm sure that he would love his child."

"No, trust me, he is that bad. I've known him a long time. More than everyone here. He is that bad."

He wanted to ask her more about him but he could sense that this was something she didn't want to discuss, something from her past. And her past was often off-limit. He had the same feeling as the one he had had when she had told him about not being able to have children. As if there was a lot of pain and history buried under her apparent confidence, and he was still afraid to find out all of it.

He could see all the pain and regrets flashing through her eyes when she thought back to everything her old master had taught her, to what exactly their lessons had entailed and how she had been more than willing to comply, wanting to learn everything there was to know about control and power. She hadn't cared that her heart was turning dark. He hadn't cared either, it was as if he wanted it that way. The more heartless and broken she became, the more happy he seemed to be. She should have figured out that she was going down a dangerous road, she should have cared. But she was too far gone. She had already been broken by too many people and all she had wanted was to finally have some control, to finally be the one making the decisions about her future. But she had just replaced her mother and the king by Rumplestiltskin. She had just changed the puppet master, she could see that now.

"Look, apparently I don't know him as well as you do, but I know him enough to know that he is a smart man. Once it will get common knowledge that you're pregnant, and trust me, it will, then he'll figure it out. So the way I see it he will find out one way or another. The only way you can have some control over it is if you're the one to tell him."

She didn't know how he knew to use these exact words but it did the job. He was right, if she wanted to have some sort of control over the situation, she needed to be one giving the information. Gold loved to find out things he wasn't supposed to know and hold it over her head. It would be better if she was the one giving the information and her conditions, that's for sure.

"You're right. I'll go talk to him."

"Okay. Good."

She studied his expression, a little bit surprised that he had been the one pleading for her to announce the news to Gold. It wasn't really in his best interest. "How are you okay with all of this?"

"I'm not. I'm just trying to do the right thing."

Once again it left her perplexed. But for entirely different reasons. She had always been selfish. Or at least she couldn't remember a time when she wasn't. Her mother had always tried to teach her that she would be a queen, that she was above everybody else and hadn't cared much about teaching her morals. Maybe it was because she hadn't any morals herself. Or at least not the usual ones.

She put her head back on David's shoulders and started unconsciously drawing circles on David's arm with her fingertips. "How do you do it?"

He stared at her fingers playing with his arm, transfixed by the unconscious but intimate action. "How do I do what?"

"You're always the good guy."

He chuckled and she raised her head for a few seconds at the movement before putting it back in place. He waited for a few seconds before talking. "I'm not always the good guy."

"To me you are."

"That's because I love you."

At this she raised her head and repositioned herself to stare at him before slowly putting on a small but genuine smile. "It's going to take a while for me to get used to this."

"We have all the time in the world."

Maybe they had, maybe they hadn't, but she would enjoy every second of it, of that she was sure now.

* * *

**A/N : So David/Henry and Regina/Gold coming up in the next chapters. I'm still not really sure of how this will go so if you have any suggestions or things you would want to see happening, I would be glad to hear them. Fire away.**


	12. Chapter 12

_**A/N:** I know that it seems like I'm always apologizing for the late updates but I do have good excuses every time, I swear. This time I have been pretty sick and it won't go away. And yes, that's a pretty lame way to start the holidays..._

_To answer two things I read in the reviews: Doing a paternity test before the baby is born is kinda risky so I don't think they would go with it. And it would be a little too easy. As for discovering the sex of the baby, that's actually something I might do soon. However I have no idea if I want it to be a boy or a girl, so if you have any preferences just tell me. As always, thank for the reviews, it's always greatly appreciated, and enjoy this new chapter! I tried to make up for the lateness by making it a long one. Don't forget to tell me what you think! :)_

* * *

Regina took a deep breath before opening the door to the pawn shop. She reminded herself one more time of the promise she had made to David. It was the only thing keeping her from turning around immediately and going back to the safety of her newly established routine. But she had promised to talk to Gold and he had promised to talk to Henry. This was the only way they were going to make things work and she would not back down.

So she pushed the door and entered the shop. The little bell made her presence known and the imp instantly made his appearance behind the counter. He immediately grinned upon recognizing her. "If it isn't her Majesty herself. What brings you here on such a nice day?"

Apparently their last encounter had ended all pretence between them. She wasn't Dr Mills anymore and he wasn't a pawn shop owner anymore either. She was the queen and he was Rumpelstiltskin. She did not know what to make of it though. Was it better to deal with him under covered words or to have everything out in the open? Probably neither. Dealing with him never ended well.

But she was here so there was no backing down now. "I came here to inform you that I'm pregnant." She almost reveled in the surprised gasp he didn't manage to hide. It was rare to catch Rumpelstiltskin by surprise. She knew however that it would only be a brief victory.

"And why would you-" Suddenly he froze. "Oh." Little by little a devilish smile started to appear on his face and she couldn't help but shiver at the visual. "I see."

She knew that if she stayed silent too long he would take advantage of the situation. She needed to show him that she was the one in control here and that he wouldn't manipulate her or her child anymore than she had already allowed him to. She righted her posture and stood tall, standing before him as the queen that she was. Not that it had ever intimidated Gold but it gave her courage and right now she needed some.

"There is only a slight chance that this is yours but there are some people who think that you should know. It's probably David's anyway. And even if it isn't, I'm raising this child with him. I don't want you anywhere near this baby, no matter how entitled you think you may be. You've already hurt my family enough."

He was about to retort that she had been the one hurting her family. After all he hadn't been the one pushing her mother through a mirror or plucking his heart out of her father's chest. But he held back, the wheels spinning inside his head. He remembered very well the spell he had cast on her so that she wouldn't be able to bare a child. How could she even be pregnant? And what was he to think of this new development anyway? Did he want this child to be his?

His first reaction would have been to scoff at the notion. He certainly didn't want any child of his former student. However the more he thought about it, the more he could remember how amazing it had been to take care of Bae when he was only a baby. How much love he had felt. Since his son had fallen through a portal, everything he had done had been to get him back. This whole curse was because of the love he had for his son. What if on the way he could gain another child? Bae had often mentioned his desire to have siblings. What if he could not only find his son again but also grant one of his wishes as well? They could be a family.

But one look at the former queen told him that she didn't want that. She was planning to play house with her prince and completely erase him of her family. There was no way he would let a child of his be raised by that Charming idiot. It was bad enough that he would have to deal with Regina- at least he had some respect for her on some level- but Charming was just out of the question. He couldn't let that happen.

Not to mention that allowing her to have her happy ending with Charming, Henry and the baby would seriously slow down the process of breaking the curse. He wasn't certain of the specifics of how it was meant to happen but he could tell that this wasn't the way. And he needed the curse broken.

After some quick thinking a gleam appeared in his eyes. He had found a solution. He would find a way to have everything he wanted, he always had. "Tell me, dearie, how do you think you were able to conceive after you made me curse you?" At her apparent lack of answer he continued. "Because the way I see it, it must have been the kind of curse that doesn't affect the caster. Which means that this is my child. Not David's."

"Or it could be true love breaking any curse." She just blurted it out without thinking about it. She didn't even know where it came from and apparently neither did Gold because his eyes widened suddenly. He quickly recovered though and bursted out laughing.

"You think that you share _true love_ with Snow's prince?" More laughter came out of his now gleeful face. "Oh my. I didn't know that you were_ that_ delusional."

She didn't know she was either. She really didn't know where that had come from. Was is true though? Did she really think she shared true love with David? That would surely complicate things even more. She hadn't even admitted to loving him yet. She brushed those thoughts away quickly. It was not the time to concern herself with such things. She hadn't come here to discuss her relationship with David. And even if she had wanted to discuss it, she definitely wouldn't have come to Gold for it. He was only ever trying to hurt her.

Still, she couldn't help but feel a little bit hurt at his dismissal and his now maniac laughter. Was the idea of her and David so ludicrous? She could understand that the idea of Prince Charming being the Evil Queen's true love seemed ridiculous. But what about Regina and David? Was it as absurd? She suddenly realised that she wanted it to be true. She wanted for them to share that special link.

Guilt instantly replaced her confusion. How could she be thinking that after Daniel? For almost fifty years all she had done had been for him. Or at least that was what she had been telling herself. It was what made it all bearable. Now was not the time to throw it all out the window.

She was quickly interrupted from her thoughts though. Gold had seen the beginning of a long and confused reflexion emerge on the queen's face and he didn't really want to stick around for that. He was already glad that he had planted some doubts in her mind. Maybe he could try and give her some more. "Does he know that I could be the father? Because I sure would love to see how he reacts to that."

"Yes, he does. He was the one to convince me to tell you." His grin fell for a few seconds. He quickly recovered but she had seen it anyway. She smiled inwardly. Another brief victory for her. Not that it really changed anything but she would take her victories where she could find them.

"And he is okay with it?"

"Well, he is not your biggest fan, but we worked it out, yes."

He could see her lips curling upwards and he felt like he was losing the upper hand, and that would definitely not do. He laid both his hands on the counter and answered her smile with one of his. "Let's hope that it lasts then. Who knows what could happen after the breaking of the curse?"

Her face paled for a few seconds before she could school her features. Her curse breaking was definitely a problem she hadn't been able to fix yet. And a big one at that. Everything would crumble and the imp knew it quite well. But he was probably just saying that to scare her and she wouldn't let him get under her skin.

"Save it. We're not even sure that it will break." She threw him one last hardened glance before taking her leave.

She was gone so fast that she missed his last words and the look of pure mischief on his face. And it was probably better that way anyway. She didn't need anymore worries than she already had.

"Oh it will, dearie, it will."

* * *

Later that day, in the Mills mansion, David was trying to have a talk with Henry. He was standing in front of his bedroom door and was trying to figure out what he was going to say exactly before opening the door. He knew that Henry accepting them was a vital part of his relationship with Regina and he was afraid to screw it up. Especially since she had kind of set him up for failure when she had told him what Henry already thought of them as a couple.

Nevertheless he wasn't about to give up on his first relationship that felt right because of a ten-year-old. That's with this new resolution that he finally knocked on the door and opened it to find Henry sitting on his bed with a large book on his lap. He closed it sharply when David entered the room.

The gesture allowed David to see the cover of the book and the big _once upon a time_ printed on it. It certainly looked as an odd book to find in the room of a ten-year-old. He would have thought that kids his age were done with fairytales. But he should have expected it. It was probably the reason for the Evil Queen and Prince Charming comparison that Regina had mentioned.

He saw it as an opener to the conversation he wanted to have. Maybe he could try to understand why Henry was so opposed to the idea of them having a child together. So he just plastered a smile on his face and got ready for the conversation they were about to have. "What are you reading?"

Henry looked at him suspiciously. Ever since he had found out about the paternity of the baby he had begun to doubt David as an ally. He was afraid that he had fallen prey to the Evil Queen. However he was the only person that he could confide in and he had always felt comfortable in his presence. And maybe if he could get him to understand what was happening, he would realise that Regina wasn't to be trusted.

That's why after a minute of arguing with himself he finally let out a deep sigh. "Can I trust you?"

David's brows furrowed. He hadn't expected the book to be such a big deal. Nevertheless he knew that it was probably the key to their problems. He smiled to the kid. "Sure."

"You promise you won't tell anyone about what I'm about to tell you?"

"I promise."

"And you won't just say I'm crazy? You will actually consider it?"

"I promise."

Henry gave him another suspicious look before patting the space next to him on the small bed. David chuckled at the gesture. "God, kid, you make it look as if you hold the key to the universe."

"Maybe not to the universe but at least to Storybrooke."

"What do you mean?"

And David listened as Henry told him about the curse. About the Evil Queen and all her wretched deeds. About Snow White and her never-ending goodness. About all the other people in town that had been robbed of their happiness. About him and his destiny as Prince Charming. About the savior and the curse breaking. He listened to it all, trying to bear an open mind.

But it was just pure madness. The kid sure had a good imagination and David was way out of his league. He couldn't just tell Henry that he thought he was crazy. That certainly wasn't what Regina had in mind when she sent him there. She wanted to make sure that Henry would not hate her any more than he already did if she openly dated David. And for that he needed to have Henry on his side. He just wasn't sure of how to go about it.

Once he was done with his explanation, the ten-year-old looked up at David with a gaze full of hopefulness. "Do you believe me?"

No, he didn't. How could he? Nobody sane would. But he held his tongue and sighed. "Honestly Henry, I can't really imagine your mother being the Evil Queen."

The kid instantly dropped his gaze, disappointed, and mumbled. "She's not my mother."

This time he wouldn't hold his tongue. This was definitely something he couldn't let go. "Of course she is! She has raised you for ten years and she will keep taking care of you until she can't anymore. She loves you, Henry. You can't go around thinking that she is not your mother. And you can't tell her that she is an evil queen."

"But it's the truth!" He sounded so more like the little kid that he was in that instant. Frustrated because grown-ups wouldn't take him seriously. Annoyed with adults not believing what was right in front of them.

"Would an evil queen go to all your soccer games? Would she make your lunch every day and slip the little notes that I know she puts in it? Would she comfort you when you have a nightmare?" Henry's gaze dropped and he started fidgeting with the hem of his shirt. "Would an evil queen work at the hospital all day long to try and make the lives of everyone better? Tell me, Henry, would an evil queen be at all like your mother is?"

"She could be faking it."

"You can't fake that."

"Why do you care anyway?"

David couldn't help but notice the resemblance between Henry and Regina when he saw the inquisitive raise of the eyebrow. Henry might not want to admit it but he was more Regina's son than he could ever imagine. And that meant that the time had come for David to spill the beans. "I love your mom and I would like you to be okay with us dating."

The only reaction he got was a wide-eyed Henry with a mouth wide open. He stayed like that for a few seconds before finally getting back the use of his tongue. "You- you love my mom?"

David nodded at the question, a small smile on his lips. "With all my heart."

"But- You're Prince Charming. And she is the Evil Queen."

"I don't care about who I am, kid. The only thing I care about is that I love your mother and I want us- you, me, Regina and the baby- to be a family. Wouldn't you like that?"

"But it's wrong."

"Why?"

"Because you belong with Snow White. You deserve to have your happy ending with her."

"But I want my happy ending with your mom. Don't you want us all to be happy?"

"I guess but-"

"Then quit arguing. Stop calling your mother the evil queen and help me make this family work." Probably not the smooth conversation he had wanted to have, but he had never really been good with words anyway.

Henry was confused, very confused. He wanted the curse broken, he wanted the whole town to know the truth and the evil queen to be punished. But he would be lying if he said that the idea of the family they could be wasn't at least a little bit appealing.

David could tell that Henry was thinking hard and even though he could see that he wasn't ready to drop his fairytale theory, at least he had managed to get his message across. So he left his spot on the bed and walked to the door. Just before he could walk through it he heard Henry's small voice. "I'll try. But I won't stop trying to break the curse. You'll see that I was right and that you shouldn't trust her."

David sighed and closed the door.

* * *

Later that evening David was awaken by the sound of keys being turned in the lock. Soon after he could hear Regina's heels in the entryway. He had dozed off in the couch after his conversation with Henry, waiting for Regina to come home from work. He liked the idea of Regina coming home to him after a long day at the hospital. This was definitely something he could get used to.

Soon after he had started entertaining these thoughts, Regina appeared in his peripheral vision. She took off her coat and her heels and went to sit next to him on the couch. Quickly enough she was snuggled onto him and he was rubbing her back absentmindedly.

"Where is Henry?"

"In his room. He had some homework to do." He was probably reading his book but she didn't need to know that.

"Thanks for watching after him. I couldn't get out of work earlier."

"Don't even mention it. I don't mind really."

She snuggled up even closer and he kissed her hairline, loving the intimacy of their embrace. Months ago he wouldn't even have dreamed of sharing such a tender moment with the brunette and now it seemed as if she had always belonged in his arms. He could only wonder what had changed. But in the end it didn't matter anyway as long as she was there and nowhere else.

"Did you talk with him?"

"Yes. And you? Did you talk with Gold?"

"I went to see him this morning."

He could tell by the silence that followed that it probably didn't go any better than it went for him but he thought he would ask anyway. You never know, right? "How did it go?"

She sighed and he tightened his embrace. "It could have gone better. You?"

"It could have gone better." They both chuckled. At least they both had each other. It was always something. "At least I think he won't call you the Evil Queen anymore."

"Well, after today Gold might be the one calling you the Evil King. He isn't your biggest fan." He laughed and she couldn't help but join in. When they finally calmed down she rested her forehead against his torso and sighed. "We make a pretty lame team, don't we?"

He gently put his fingers under her chin so she would look at him. "We make the best of the circumstances we're in." And he filled the mere inches separating their faces by pressing his lips onto hers. It was sweet and comforting. Loving. Everything she wouldn't have thought possible after Daniel's death.

She took advantage of their parting for air to straddle him completely and whisper in his ear. "Stay the night." It was more of a timid question than a veritable request but he was glad to grant it anyway. He captured her lips once more, sliding his hands under her thighs. He got up from the couch, taking her with him, and manoeuvred them towards her bedroom. Gold and Henry could protest all they wanted, they wouldn't give up so easily. Not when it felt so right.


	13. Chapter 13

_A/N : Well, I'm going to finally admit it: I'm a slow writer. So no excuses for late updates anymore because it's becoming redundant._

_Also once again thank you so much for the reviews! For now we only have one vote for a girl. If there are more of you who have an opinion on the matter, don't hesitate. And I have another dilemma: sugar or no sugar between Regina and David? I can go two ways about it. One- they keep having lots of problems with each other. Two- they are an awesome couple but they have lots of problems with other people, such as Gold, Henry, Emma... I'm leaning towards the second one, seeing as it's definitely not a canon couple and that I like seeing them happy together at least in fanfictions, but I would love to hear what you think about it. And what you think about the chapter of course. So R&R! :)_

* * *

Gold waited patiently near the exit of the school. Two more minutes and he could finally set his plan into motion. In a way he was glad that Regina had finally broken the monotony of their endless years in Storybrooke. It gave him just the push he needed to finally start plotting the demise of the curse. Soon enough he would be reunited with his son and after hundreds of years he was dying with anticipation. He needed it to happen badly. And when he needed something badly, he usually got it.

Finally the bell could be heard and he saw children running towards their parents. Regina wasn't there though, neither was David. He had made sure of that. Messing with her car had been easy enough. Finding a veterinary emergency for David had been a little bit more complicated but he wasn't the Dark One for nothing. That dog had certainly not seen him coming.

Eventually he saw that the ten-year-old was close enough and dropped all the grocery bags that had been standing next to him just a few minutes before. The bags ripped and he cursed, their content now splayed all over the sidewalk. Henry immediately ran towards him and started helping him with the mess he had created.

Gold smirked internally. He had been right when thinking that Henry would act just as any Charming would and fly to his rescue. Nature before nurture, obviously. Or maybe not. After all Regina had been the first one to save someone she really shouldn't have saved when she had seen Snow on that runaway horse.

But it didn't really matter why he had come to help him, what mattered was that he had. His plan was working. He slowly rose and leaned on his cane, giving Henry a grateful smile. "Thank you. I guess I filled these bags too much."

Henry smiled in response, completely unaware of the act being performed in front of his very eyes. "You're welcome." He looked at the bags he had tried to salvage. There was no way Gold would be able to carry them to his house, especially if it had already been hard for him before they ripped. He looked at the man one more time before taking a decision. "I could help you carrying these to your home. It looks heavy."

"Won't your mother mind if you're not here when she comes looking for you?"

"No."

Yes, she would, and they both knew it but Henry wasn't really looking forward to her picking him up anyway. He had promised David to try and be more civil with her but he was still convinced that she was the Evil Queen and he would take every opportunity to get away from her. As for Gold he couldn't care less about Regina. Making her worry was actually on the plus side of things.

"Well then, I would really appreciate your help, young man."

They both walked silently to his house, Henry doing most of the carrying and Gold trying not to smile too much at how easy it had been. When they finally reached their destination, he opened the door and led Henry to the kitchen. The ten-year-old dropped the grocery bags on the counter and was about to take his leave when he was stopped by the pawn shop owner. "You really helped me today, Henry, and I would like to thank you. I like making deals. What do you say if in exchange for the help you brought me today I give you something in return?"

Henry raised his head, his curiosity piqued and Gold took it as his cue to go on. "I can give you anything you want. It can be something from my shop, or an information that you've been looking for. I'm pretty good at finding_ things_."

The ten-year-old immediately thought of his birth mother, without knowing that it was actually what the older man had been going for. It didn't take him long to get a promise of a name and an address. When Henry finally left the pawn shop owner's house, he was feeling much more hopeful than ever. After all the disappointment of David falling for the Evil Queen, a little bit of hope was very much welcome, no matter where it came from.

It lifted his spirits enough so that he didn't care when he met a very furious and worried Regina who scolded him about leaving the school grounds with people he didn't know. He didn't even bother telling her that everybody knew everybody in Storybrooke and that he was big enough to know danger when there was some. She probably wouldn't have believed him anyway, for he didn't know but Rumpelstiltskin was always associated with danger.

* * *

A few days later Regina arrived once more at the school to find that Henry wasn't waiting for her. She went to his classroom and got the same thing from Mary Margaret as she got the last time. Henry had left when the bell had rang and he should have been waiting outside. She knew she hadn't punished him enough the first time but she hadn't wanted to strain their relationship even more. It had been stupid. She was his mother and she had to set the rules. It shouldn't really matter if Henry liked it or not.

She sat down on a bench in front of the school and waited for Henry to come back, all the while thinking about how she should punish him so that it would never happen again. It seemed as if lately there was no right method anymore. There was nothing she could do to make him listen to her. He could tell that her threats were all empty threats and he was just ignoring her. It had been a little bit better ever since David had talked to him, but it certainly hadn't returned to what their relationship should have been.

However as the minutes went by, she began to worry. There was still no signs of Henry and it was getting late. What if he had really gotten into trouble this time?

She couldn't sit down anymore so she got on her feet and started to pace in front of the school. She didn't even know where to start, having absolutely no idea of where he could be. She started panicking. He was only ten years old. He was his son. And he was missing. She started hyperventilating, suddenly stilling in her tracks.

Mary Margaret chose that exact same time to be leaving the school. She frowned at seeing the doctor still in front of the school and obviously in a state of panic. She carefully got closer. "Dr Mills? Henry didn't come back?" One look in the eyes of the usually so well put together woman told her everything she needed to know.

Seeing that the older brunette was not calming down she carefully put her hands on her shoulders and sat her on the first bench she found. "Dr Mills, I need you to take deep and slow breaths. Just focus on your breathing, don't think of anything else."

Little by little the brunette's breathing evened out but the desperation didn't leave her eyes. She looked at the teacher, finally finding back the use of her tongue. "I d-don't know w-where he is." And she leaned forward, sobbing. "It's my f-fault. He h-hates me."

To say that the schoolteacher was surprised would have been an understatement. She was flabbergasted. Never would she have imagined Regina Mills breaking down like this in front of her. It made her freeze for a few minutes but eventually her instincts took over and she started to run a soothing hand on the woman's back. "Shh, it's going to be okay. He is probably just with some friends. We are going to find him."

At that, Regina raised her head and her tears stopped for a few seconds. "David, I need to call David. Maybe he picked him up." There was no reason for it and he would have told her, but she needed to believe that Henry was okay. That she was stupid to have been thinking of the worst case scenario. They were in Storybrooke. Nothing ever happened in Storybrooke.

Mary Margaret watched as Regina pulled her phone from her pocket and started typing David's number. He picked up after the third ring. "David? Is Henry with you?" The younger brunette didn't hear the answer but she didn't need to. The tears coming back into the doctor's eyes were pretty self-explanatory.

"No, I don't know where he is. I went to pick him up at the school but he wasn't there. It's been hours, David." Regina nodded as David spoke. Mary-Margaret couldn't hear what he was saying but it was working. Regina was calming down and she was listening intently. She didn't really understand why but she felt a small pang in her heart when she realized that the doctor and the veterinarian might be in a serious relationship. She had no idea where that was coming from. She shouldn't care about Regina's relationship. And yet, she did. Maybe it was because it was David. She had always had a crush on him. But it was nothing. He obviously didn't feel the same way towards her and she didn't even know why she was thinking about it.

After a few minutes Regina hung up and got off the bench. "Thank you, Miss Blanchard, for- You know." She looked as if she was about to say something more but eventually decided against it. "I have to go."

"Wait! Regina-" The older brunette turned upon hearing her name escaping the school teacher's lips. It caught her off guard. "What are you going to do? Maybe I can help."

"It's nice of you but I got it covered. I'm meeting David at the house in case Henry happens to come home on his own and the Sheriff is going to join us and help us look for him."

"Okay then. I'll call you if I hear anything. I hope you find him."

"So do I." They exchanged an awkward smile before finally parting ways.

Regina still couldn't get over the fact that she had let Snow White comfort her. Sure she had come a long way and was ready to forgive the annoying woman, but still, she wouldn't have gone willingly to her with her problems. The brunette had been surprisingly helpful though, managing to calm her down before her panic attack got the best of her. In the end it had been David who had truly managed to help her, but she couldn't deny that she had appreciated the teacher's efforts.

However she quickly shook off these thoughts. She didn't have time to ponder her feelings for Snow, she had to find Henry.

* * *

She quickly reached her house, glad to see that Graham and David were already here, sitting on the couch and discussing where they could find Henry. They both turned their head and got on their feet when they saw her enter the room but she made them sit back down and joined David on the couch. They both listened intently to what Graham was saying.

"Okay, so first I don't want you to panic. We are going to find Henry. David was just telling me that the last time he wasn't at the school when you showed up was because he went to help Mr Gold carry his groceries. He is probably just at somebody's house right now. We just need to find which one."

David and Regina both nodded. Somehow they were calmer in each other's presence. Graham was studying them discreetly. He hadn't understood why David had been the one to call him and why he was sticking around. However it got clearer and clearer when he saw them sitting so close to one another. He caught the way David put his hand on Regina's thigh and squeezed it to comfort her. She didn't even acknowledge the gesture, it just calmed her. If he had tried that one a few months ago he would never have heard the end of it.

So this was why she had dumped him. Not that they had something very serious going on but he couldn't remember a time when they hadn't been seeing each other. It was just to take the edge off of their lonely nights and it didn't mean anything but he missed it. And seeing her and David acting like a real couple was making him slightly jealous. But he didn't get to be jealous now, not when she was looking for her son and she needed him to find him. _Him_. Not David. He smiled, that was a small victory in itself.

"I'll start with Gold since that's where he was last time. Then probably Granny's dinner because honestly if I were a kid, that's where I would go. Any other suggestions? Some friends of his?"

Regina sighed. "He doesn't really have friends." She had already tried to make a list in her mind and she had realized just how lonely Henry was. She didn't know if it was because of her curse or something else, but Henry had always had trouble making friends. It wasn't surprising that he had instantly believed the curse. He had needed something to pass the time. Something to believe in. Maybe she should have pushed him to make friends, maybe then he wouldn't have had time to care about evil curses. But she had never been the most friendly person so she didn't know much about making friends. That was probably why she had let it go. She should have realized that it wasn't healthy for her, and it certainly wasn't healthy for Henry. Cora hadn't really be the best model for her or for her parenting of Henry.

But she couldn't go down the Cora road now. Henry needed her and driving herself into the endless self-depreciation that immediately followed the mention of her mother wouldn't do. "Maybe I could try his castle. It's close to the shores, he often goes there."

"You should probably stay here, Regina, just in case he comes back on his own. I'll go there."

Regina nodded and David noticed with surprise that she didn't even act surprised at the sheriff calling her by her first name. It seemed as if she was used to it. He didn't know they were friends. However as he followed Graham's line of vision he wondered if friends was really the word for it. A friend would definitely not ogle another friend that way.

The look Graham was giving Regina made David's blood boil. It should have been pretty obvious that she was taken. Just to make sure that it indeed was, David draped his arm around Regina's waist. Graham noticed the obvious attempt at claiming Regina as his own and discreetly smirked, which angered David even more. In that particular moment he wished that Regina's baby bump would be more visible. It wasn't that big to start with and she was doing too good of a job at covering it. Surely if it was visible, Graham would drop it.

Fortunately for both of them Regina didn't notice the silent exchange between the two men. If she had she would definitely have thrown them out of her house, appalled by their childish behaviour. But as things were, she was much too focused on worrying about Henry to notice anything else.

When Graham made a move to get up and move towards the door, she instinctively followed him. When they reached the hallway, he opened the front door and turned towards her. He chanced a glance at David before enveloping her in a tight hug. "Don't worry too much. I'll find him." He had his eyes fixed on David as his hands were slowly descending towards her backside but before he could reach his destination, she pulled away from the hug and smiled at him.

"Thank you. You should go now."

He nodded and went outside but chanced a last smile before she could close the door. "I miss you, Regina. Know that my door is always open to you. As it always has been."

But she closed the door on him before he could say anything else, not really in the mood to argue with him or with David for that matter. However when she turned around and saw the look on David's face, she realized that it wasn't going to be ignored so easily.

Her doubts were confirmed when he looked at her and waved his hand in the air. "What was that about?"

She sighed, knowing that the truth was probably her better option. "Nothing. We used to have a thing but that's over. Don't worry about it. I broke it off when you came into the picture."

"A thing?"

"An X-rated kind of thing."

"Ah." And what else could he say? He couldn't really blame her for something that happened before him anyway. It was just pure jealousy. He had known that she was seeing other men, it shouldn't change anything to finally be able to put a face on one of them. And she wasn't seeing him anymore so it was fine.

She studied him for a few minutes and eventually her lips curled upwards. "You're jealous."

He was about to protest but when he noticed a glint in her eyes which had been grim ever since Henry disappeared, he stopped himself and smiled too. "Maybe a little."

She chuckled and went for the kitchen, the mood definitely lighter than before. "Do you want something to drink while we wait?"


	14. Chapter 14

**A/N: First of all I know that I said I was done apologizing for always posting late updates but since this one is _really_ late I'll apologize anyway. There was a wedding in my family so everyone was around for a few weeks, hence the no time to write. And I was having kind of a writer's block with Emma. I have some troubles understanding her character. Now I'm going to India (I'm currently in Uzbekistan between two planes) so it might not be better for the next one, but you never know.**

**Anyway I hope you enjoy this chapter and the arrival of Emma Swan. Don't hesitate to tell me what you think. After tons of planes it will be a nice way to go to sleep. :)**

* * *

Regina and David were both sitting on the couch with nearly untouched drinks in their hands when they saw two headlights coming down the street. Not recognizing the car they both turned back to their drinks, the small hope that it was Graham bringing back Henry going away. However they raised their heads again when they noticed that the car was coming to a stop in front of the big white mansion.

David didn't even get the chance to react that Regina was already on the porch, nervously looking at the passenger door of the yellow bug that was being parked in front of her house. When Henry stumbled nervously out of the car she finally let go of the breath she had been holding. The ten-year-old didn't even get the chance to take two steps that his mother was already holding him tight, two single tears rolling down her cheeks with the relief of seeing her little boy alive and well, not realizing just how many bad scenarios her mind had gone through while he was missing.

However it was brief as Henry quickly pulled away, surprised that he had let it go on for so long already. He certainly was not in the business of hugging Evil queens, especially when he had just found his real mother. That Regina had been his mother for ten years and that he longed for her comforting arms after the adventures of the day were thoughts that were quickly pushed at the back of his mind.

While Regina was too busy focusing on Henry, David noticed the other woman stepping out of the car. With her red leather jacket and her long blond hair she was kind of hard to miss. Not really knowing what to do he stepped up and went to shake her hand. "I'm David, Regina's boyfriend."

Regina's ears perked up. It was the first time he presented himself as her boyfriend to someone. She wasn't sure what to make of it though. She found out that she kind of liked it. This wasn't the time to think about this however, which became pretty clear when the blonde woman answered and all the air was stolen from Regina's lungs.

There had been an awkward smile and then the words were out. They were said nervously, almost whispered but everyone heard them all the same. "I'm Emma- Henry's biological mother apparently."

Getting over his shock, David chanced a glance at Regina and what he saw made his heart clench. It was like her whole world had come crashing down on her. Her eyes were fixed on the blonde woman standing before her and he could tell that she thought it was the end. That Emma was there to claim back her son, a son that didn't want to live with her anymore. A son that she had lost, no matter how much she had wanted to never let him go.

"W-what?" It was a small whisper but the woman with an usually extensive vocabulary was at a lost for words. The language section of her brain had frozen like every other piece of herself. Regina had never thought this moment would come. She had had some nightmares about it, but she had always told herself that it was a closed adoption and that Henry would always be hers. That there was no mother to come and claim him. But she should have figured, everything was always taken from her eventually. Henry would be no exception.

"Pretty much my first reaction too." Emma tried to lighten the mood by laughing but it was done so nervously that it just made the air even more dense. Everyone could feel it and David started to get really uncomfortable. He wanted to wrap his arms around Regina but he could tell that this wasn't the time. This was something she wanted to deal with on her own.

He watched back and forth between the two women staring at each other silently before grabbing Henry's hand. The ten-year-old was watching the exchange just as intensely, except maybe with more curiosity. He wanted to see his saviour defeating the Evil Queen, he was waiting for the curse to end and he was dying to know how it would happen.

"I'm going to put Henry to bed."

This was immediately followed by Henry's irritated growl. "I'm not tired."

Regina didn't even turn, her eyes still locked on Emma's, but her voice held no room for argument. "It's way past your bedtime so you are going to bed, now. We'll talk about you running away in the morning."

"Fine. But I can go on my own, I'm not a baby. I don't need David to tuck me in." With that he turned around and ascended the stairs, his backpack on his shoulder and his steps purposely loud.

David looked towards Regina with a question in his eyes and she nodded slightly, a silent agreement between them that he should still check on Henry, no matter what the young boy had said. With that in mind he left the two women and ascended the stairs behind Henry.

The small exchange with David seemed to have pulled Regina out of her stupor, as she schooled her features in a more neutral expression. She gave Emma a fake welcoming smile and turned slightly towards the front door of the mansion. "Maybe we could talk inside, if you don't mind."

"No, not all. Maybe some drinks would be welcome too."

Regina just smiled in response, even if it was just as fake as her previous smile, and lead the way to the living room. She wanted some answers from the woman but that didn't mean that she enjoyed the company. Not that she knew the blonde personally but there was always the possibility that she could try and steal Henry away from her, and that was reason enough not to like her.

They both sat on opposite sofas, two glasses of apple cider on the table between them. Emma moved for hers quickly but Regina held off. She wanted her mind to be as functioning as possible for the conversation that was bound to happen. She wouldn't let her son be taken away that easily.

"So, Miss-" Regina rose an inquiring eyebrow, realizing that she didn't even know the woman's full name. All she knew was that she was supposed to be her son's birth mother, an information that she didn't particularly like.

"Swan. Emma Swan." The impersonation of James Bond was once again an attempt from Emma to lighten the mood, but it seemed to go completely unnoticed. _Tough public_, she thought. But what she didn't know was that the main reason it had gone completely ignored was that Regina had simply not gotten the reference. She had just put it down to the blonde's weird behavior. Because how could Emma know really that what Henry had told her was true and that the Mills family was living in a cursed town with little to zero cinematographic culture?

"Miss Swan, how did my son find you and where exactly?" Straight and to the point, Regina was in business mode.

"Boston." Regina's eyes widened for a few seconds before she could put back her poker face. Boston was hours away from Storybrooke and it certainly was a big city for a ten-year-old, or for any inhabitant of Storybrooke really. Medieval time followed by small-town living didn't really prepare you for that big of a city. She had been right to be worried, he could really have gotten into a lot of troubles. But she stored the information away for later, focusing on Emma's answers instead. Scolding Henry about his careless behavior would have to wait for the following morning.

"As for how he found me, I have absolutely no idea. It was supposed to be a closed adoption and I moved a lot since then."

"I'm well aware that this was a closed adoption. I wanted it this way."

Emma sensed the defensiveness in the older woman's clipped tone and she quickly understood what the matter was, almost choking on her drink at the realization. She instantly put it back down and started gesturing wildly with her hands. "Me too! I'm not here to claim any right over the kid. I don't want to be a part of his life either. God no! He just showed up at my door and what was I to do? I couldn't let him get back here on his own. It was the middle of the night!"

Regina slowly nodded, still not convinced but her insecurities would be hard to get rid of anyway. No matter what Emma would say, Regina would still doubt it, expecting the worse. The period of her life when she used to be optimistic was long gone, destroyed by years of tears and heartbreaks.

Just as she was about to ask more questions, David barged into the living room, her phone in his hand. He had heard it ring while he was coming down the stairs and he had instinctively picked it up, thinking that it was his own.

Both women turned towards him and he extended his arm for Regina to take her phone. "It's the hospital. They say it's important." He had tried to tell them that Regina was busy, knowing very well that the conversation she wanted to have with Emma was an important one too, but apparently they really needed her so he had caved in.

Regina instantly put her phone to her ear and rose from the sofa while talking into it. "Yes, it's Dr. Mills. What happened?" She left the room to hear her interlocutor's response and Emma was left to ponder on everything Henry had forgotten to mention.

He had talked a lot about fairy tales and his mother being the evil queen, so she was a little bit surprised by who the Regina Mills she had met actually was. Sure she wasn't the friendliest person ever but she seemed rather protective of her son. She apparently had a nice boyfriend that Henry hadn't mentioned either, and a house that Emma could have only dreamed of having while growing up. And apparently she was working at the hospital too. Definitely not how she had pictured the evil queen from Henry's stories. Nevertheless the kid's rambling worried her. She knew that sometimes things were not as they seemed.

However, before she could ponder more on that, Regina came back into the room, visibly shaken. "They need me at the hospital. There is something wrong with Gladys' heart. She was just admitted and they say they need to operate but Whale doesn't think he can do it on his own. I have to go."

She started grabbing her purse and coat, completely oblivious to the company she had been entertaining. She couldn't believe this was happening. Storybrooke's citizens never had life-threatening conditions. The time being frozen, they couldn't die. This wasn't right, something must have happened, but she couldn't figure out what. And her mind wasn't really focused on finding the key to that mystery either. She was too shaken by the mental image of Gladys being in a near death state. That woman was like her mother.

David could sense Regina's turmoil and he quickly went to stand before her, grabbing both her hands and squeezing them. She met his eyes, surprised to find out that he was in front of her. She was about to protest at him holding her back but he spoke before she could do so. "Regina, I know that you have to go but, please, let me drive you. You're obviously in no condition."

She scoffed. "If I'm able to operate on someone, then I should certainly be able to drive myself to the hospital."

"Well right now you're not ready to operate on someone. Right now you're overwhelmed by the possibility that someone you hold dear may die. If I drive you, you might get the chance to calm down in the car and give Gladys the best care you can give her."

Regina seemed to consider it for a moment but eventually shook her head. "No, you have to stay here for Henry, we can't leave him alone in the house."

David was about to argue some more but he realized that he truly hadn't thought about that. He wasn't as used as she was to being a parent and he hadn't even thought of the little boy upstairs in his bed. And he hated himself for that. He was about to be a father and he couldn't even think about such simple things as not letting a child alone in the house, especially when said child was going through a difficult time.

He momentarily thought about asking Emma to stay in the house while he drove Regina to the hospital but he thought better of it. Regina would kill him for even suggesting it. She didn't want for Emma to stay longer with Henry than necessary.

However his problem was rapidly solved as the blonde woman in question stepped up. "I could drive you to the hospital." It was an impulsive proposition. Emma hadn't really thought about it but she wasn't ready to go back to Boston right away and this was the perfect opportunity to stick around for a little while longer.

Regina rolled her eyes. Apparently her dislike for the woman wasn't as evident as she had thought it to be. Her fake smiles were way too convincing. "That is ridiculous. I can very well drive myself to the hospital."

But David's eyes stopped her. He was pleading with her and even if she thought his worries to be unfounded she knew she would eventually give in. "Please, Regina. Just let her drive you."

One last glance at his pleading eyes and she nodded. "Okay, but we have to go now. They are prepping the OR and we are wasting precious time."

Emma nodded and both women got out of the house quickly, going for the bug. The blonde saw Regina hesitate for a moment at the passenger door of her bug. Apparently her trusted car was not the brunette's idea of a safe means of transport. She saw a comment forming on the woman's lips but it faded just as quickly and she climbed in the car. Regina knew there was no time to waste and discussing the blonde's lack of taste in vehicles would definitely lead them nowhere.

Emma seemed to understand her reasoning as she also climbed into the car and started the ignition, ready to follow the brunette's instructions.


	15. Chapter 15

**_A/N:_**_ A few days without the internet proved themselves to be quite productive since I've written the longest chapter I've ever written. There is a little bit of everyone, and I'm still truly sorry if Emma doesn't come out quite right. I also added some Graham since most of you seemed to like it, I hope I won't disappoint. Continue to tell me what you think, I always take it into consideration. Thanks to you I know the sex of the baby (and I also have a name!). Anyway... good lecture! :)_

* * *

Regina and Emma reached the hospital rather quickly and silently, the only words exchanged between the two of them being the directions for the hospital. Emma didn't push for more, knowing that Regina didn't need any distractions from her incoming surgery. And she didn't really know what to say to the woman anyway. Under other circumstances she would never have approached the brunette. They didn't seem to have anything in common and Regina wasn't really sending her a friendly vibe either, though she didn't know if it was because she was Henry's birth mother or if it was because she was like that with everyone.

She hadn't heard a lot about the woman Regina was supposed to operate on but Regina's reaction to the phone call and the fact that she referred to her by her first name told Emma that she was rather important to Regina.

That was probably why Regina didn't notice the blonde coming out of the car with her when they stopped in front of the hospital. She was too focused on clearing her mind of all exterior problems. And the blonde being one of her major ones, she wasn't about to notice her following her around the hospital.

As for Emma, she didn't really know what to do. She still didn't want to go back to Boston right away. She wanted to see what Henry's life was like, though she didn't really know why. After all, she did give him up and, as Regina had reminded her, it was a closed adoption, one where she was never supposed to see her son ever again. But still, she couldn't resolve herself to leave. He was her blood and genes, it had to count for something.

She could see people looking at her weirdly. She didn't know if it was because she was a stranger to the small town or if it was because she was entering a more restricted area of the hospital. However nobody said anything. Apparently Regina's presence was confirmation enough of her right to be there.

It wasn't really surprising actually. Emma could see that here, in her natural environment, Regina simply oozed power. Everyone was greeting her with respect and they were all making room for her to pass them by.

Soon enough they reached the locker room and that's when Regina finally noticed the other woman's presence, just as she was about to close the door on her. "Miss Swan? What are you doing here?"

Emma realized that she had to find an excuse, and rather quickly. Regina's authoritative gaze and her raised eyebrow were making her nervous. However she didn't falter one bit and answered with all the confidence she could muster. After all, improvisation to get what she wanted was part of her job. And she was really good at it. "I thought you mind need someone to drive you back home after the surgery."

"I could always find somebody else."

"You don't seem to be the kind of woman that asks for help easily, and I'm offering. Let's say that I'm saving you the trouble of asking."

"Come on in then. I would greatly like to know what kind of woman you peg me for but I don't have time for your rash judgments. Let's just save them for later." Regina watched with satisfaction the blonde hurrying inside, her mouth decidedly shut.

She went for her locker, grabbing clean scrubs on the way, and started taking her coat off. Meanwhile Emma just stood in a corner, trying to give the brunette some privacy as she undressed herself. However it proved to be difficult when she stood with only her bra, her baby bump visibly showing. Yet another thing Henry hadn't told her. Or maybe he didn't know. After all Emma had completely missed it, whereas normally she would notice details like that. The older woman was good at hiding it, which made Emma wonder why she bothered. Usually people like to flaunt about their pregnancy.

Once she was done dressing herself with her hospital scrubs, Regina turned towards the blonde and noticed her thoughtful look. "What's going on in that head of yours, Miss Swan?"

"Nothing... You're pregnant?"

Emma was definitely the last person with whom Regina wanted to discuss her situation. It was definitely the worst moment too. And it clearly showed in her annoyed tone. "I think that's pretty obvious, yes. Now, if you're quite done with questions that have obvious answers, there are people waiting for me in the operating room. You can wait wherever you want, I'll find you when I'm done."

She then proceeded to grab all she needed to get into the O.R. and pushed the door to the room connecting the two places to go and wash her hands, the gesture meant to show that the blonde was dismissed.

Once the brunette had left the room, Emma was left to her own devices and quickly realized that she'd better start looking for the waiting room. If she was lucky enough, maybe she would find it before the end of Regina's surgery. She hadn't really paid attention to her surroundings on her way in, too focused that she was on figuring out the complexity of Regina Mills, and for a small town hospital it was quite a labyrinth.

Meanwhile, Regina joined Dr. Whale who was already standing next to the operating table. She chanced a glance in Gladys' direction and was grateful for the drape standing between herself and Gladys' head. It would make it easier to focus. She silently thanked David and Emma for making her late. It was better to arrive now than when they were setting the old lady on the table, Regina was sure of that.

A nurse immediately arrived to help her put on her gown and gloves, while Whale turned towards her. "I'm sorry I made you come this late but I wasn't really confident about doing this on my own."

"Don't worry about it. I should help you more with the night shifts anyway. And it's not a surgery we do everyday. I probably would have called you too."

"Still, I'm sorry. David mentioned that you were dealing with something important."

Regina was glad for the nurse having finished to dress her in that exact moment. She smiled in acknowledgment and went for the table. "We'll talk about it later."

It was a quick dismissal and Whale nodded. He knew that he would get to ask all his questions once they were done with the trickiest part of the intervention. For now they both had to focus on their work. So he took a deep breath and looked at Regina who nodded in response. She was ready. He then looked at the nurse in charge and also nodded. She instantly turned off the radio that had been softly playing in the background and handed Whale a scalpel.

* * *

Approximately four hours later, Regina and Whale both let out a big sigh of relief. Gladys' heartbeat was back to strong and steady and they just had to close her up. The adrenaline was wearing off and Regina started feeling her aching back and feet. Her pregnancy was making it hard for her to remain standing for hours during surgeries. Whale noticed her fidgeting and asked for a stool which was quickly brought over to her. She looked as if she was about to refuse it for a few seconds, but thought better of it. There was no reason for being proud after the day she had had. So she took it gratefully and leaned on it.

She chanced a glance at the big clock surmounting the room and realized that she would have to be quick if she wanted to be home early enough to make Henry's breakfast and drive him to school, which reminded her that she still had to find Emma before being able to do so. She could sense that looking for the blonde was going to annoy her so she decided to avoid herself the trouble and turned towards the nurse that had brought her the stool. "Sandy? Would you mind looking for Emma Swan? You'll probably find her in the waiting room. She is a blonde with an obnoxious red jacket, she should be easy to find. Once you find her bring her to the lockers' room and tell her I'll be out soon."

The nurse nodded and left the room, leaving behind a curious Whale. He looked up from behind his stitching and smirked. "Emma Swan? Does she have anything to do with the important matter you had to deal with?"

The brunette looked up from her own stitching, ready to tell him to back off, but she saw that he just wanted to talk and she could use someone to confide in. So instead of the annoyed comment she had planned on throwing him, she just sighed. "Unfortunately, yes."

"Who is she?"

"Henry's birth mother."

Whale's hands stilled and he looked up to see that Regina was focused on her work, no further comment leaving her lips. He could tell that this was annoying her though. The look in her eyes was unmistakeable. He went back to his stitching too, preferring to keep the conversation casual. "What is she doing here?"

"Henry went to look for her in Boston. She brought him back."

He preferred not to comment on Henry running off. It was probably what hurt her the most, the culmination of months of a tense relationship. "And why is she still there?"

"I don't know. David insisted for her to drive me to the hospital, and now she wants to drive me back. But I think she is just stalling. I don't know what she wants."

He didn't say anything. He didn't have the answer and he didn't want to worry her further with thoughts of this woman not wanting to leave her son. Because what other reason would she have for staying? But Regina probably already knew that and he really didn't need to add to it. She already had enough problems with her pregnancy.

He looked at the clock and noticed the same thing as Regina. She would have to hurry if she wanted to take care of Henry before sending him off to school. And knowing the latest developments he was sure that it was something she wanted to do. "Regina?" He waited until she raised her eyes and gently smiled at her. "I can finish up on my own. Thanks for helping me, but you can go back to Henry. I would understand."

She smiled to thank him, since there wasn't much more she could do without breaking the sterility rule of the O.R. and she wasn't really the kind of person to dispense grateful hugs either. She then hurried up to get rid of all her surgical equipments before going back to the locker room.

Emma was already there, the nurse having done her job efficiently, and Regina nodded in her direction before opening her locker and stuffing all her clothes in her handbag. Henry was going to wake up soon and she wanted to have the time to talk to him about everything that happened the previous day. She could bring back the scrubs later - when she would visit Gladys - and put them in the laundry bag then. She noticed Emma looking at her curiously, probably because she didn't understand why she was in such a hurry. "I want to be there when Henry wakes up and I'm already late."

The blonde nodded and ran after Regina who was already in the hallway. She had wanted to ask how the surgery had gone but she figured that no news meant good news. Moreover she could sense that trying to talk to the brunette would just annoy her. She seemed rather tired – which wasn't surprising if you considered that she had been up for more than 24 hours - and tired and pregnant ladies weren't the most pleasant persons to talk to. Emma knew that very well.

However she soon found out that there were other people that didn't know that. Regina had almost reached the end of the hallway when she bumped into Graham. He steadied her with both his hands and Emma couldn't help but notice that he wanted to linger, but Regina quickly pulled out of his grasp.

"Regina, good morning." He gave her his most charming smile and she almost rolled her eyes. "I learned that someone brought back Henry. You see, I told you there was no need to worry."

"There were plenty of reasons to worry. He was in Boston for god's sake! Do you know how dangerous this is for a ten-year-old?"

"But he came back. I'm sorry I couldn't find him, I searched all over Storybrooke but obviously I could have searched all night and still wouldn't have found him."

"I completely forgot to call you when he came back, I'm sorry. I do hope you didn't spend too much unnecessary time looking for him."

"I certainly did not. David was glad to call me and tell me that _my services were no longer required_. His words. I'd say you've got one jealous boyfriend on your hands, Regina."

"And I'd say you're baiting him on purpose."

Just as Graham was about to answer, Regina realized that Emma was still standing next to them and was apparently enthralled by their conversation. Not liking people meddling in her personal life, Regina angrily turned in her direction. "Do you mind waiting a little bit further off so that I can have a personal conversation with the sheriff here?"

"But I thought we were in a hurry?"

"I have to deal with this. It will only take a few minutes." She waited until the blonde was out of sight before turning back to Graham as if there had been no interruption. "You have to stop this, Graham. The thing we had, it's over. I'm with David now and that's all there is to it."

"You were never one for monogamy, Regina."

She pinched the bridge of her nose, clearly annoyed by how persevering he was. But she couldn't have him hanging around them and picking on David. She knew that she was already bringing her share of her problems into the relationship and she didn't need to add an annoying ex-lover to the list. "Look, I'm pregnant. He is my boyfriend and we're going to raise this baby together. So no, I'm not fooling around anymore."

Graham faltered a bit at the news but quickly recovered. He didn't know why but somehow there was always something bringing him back to Regina. He couldn't help himself. So he put back his grin and recovered his confidence. "He is dull. You need someone adventurous, someone that can make you climb the curtains, someone who can be as wild as you in bed. You'll see that you need me."

His hand went from her shoulder to her forearm during his speech and she didn't notice, too shocked by what he was saying. However when his hand went from her forearm to the small of her back and pushed to bring her closer, she noticed. And her reaction was immediate. A loud slap could be heard from all around the hallway and everyone quieted down, stopping their conversations to look at the altercation between their sheriff and the annoyed doctor.

Emma, who had been hiding close to Regina, gasped. Regina asking her to step away from the conversation had made her even more curious, so she hadn't resisted the temptation of eavesdropping after all. It had been quite easy to do so unnoticed, the brunette being far too absorbed by her conversation. However now she had been caught. She wondered for a minute if she would get a slap too, but apparently the gesture was reserved for men being too insistent.

Regina threw Emma a dark glare for eavesdropping and walked with a strong step towards the gates of the hospital, the blonde quickly following behind. They both climbed into the car and buckled their seat-belt. Before Emma could pull her car out of park, she heard the tired voice of Regina next to her. "Even if you get the chance, don't mention what happened with Graham to David. I don't want him to think he has anything to worry about."

Emma nodded and started the car. She had understood that with Regina the lesser words you used, the better. And for now she had no intention of annoying the brunette, especially with the state she was in. On their way to the house, Emma chanced several glances in the older woman's direction and noticed that she had fallen asleep rather quickly, the day finally catching up to her.

Emma didn't know what to think of the sleeping surgeon in the passenger seat of her car. She certainly seemed to have a lot on her plate but there was no conclusion Emma could draw from that. Every time she thought she had figured out the type of woman that Regina was, something new would come out of nowhere and change everything. At this point she wouldn't even be surprised if the woman was indeed the evil queen Henry had talked about.

* * *

Regina awoke when they reached her front gate. She couldn't believe she had fallen asleep in the yellow monstrosity that the blonde used for driving. She turned her head in Emma's direction and chanced a polite smile but her tired state was making it difficult. "Thank you for driving me. And for bringing Henry back. I hope you have a safe trip back to Boston."

But once again her attempt at politely getting rid of the blonde nuisance failed as Emma unbuckled her seat-belt and followed her out of the car. Regina tiredly turned towards her, trying to block the path to her house. "Are you ever going to leave?"

"I just want to make sure that you don't fall from exhaustion. That wouldn't be good for the baby."

The brunette growled in response. The blonde's excuses didn't even make sense anymore. But she was too tired to fight. So she simply unlocked her door and went in.

She found Henry rummaging through the fridge, obviously looking for something to eat for breakfast. He turned around at the sound of his mother coming home and was surprised to see her in her hospital clothes. And with Emma behind her. That made Henry smile, she hadn't left yet.

Regina noticed Henry's smile and whom it was directed to. However she decided to ignore it. She was too tired to get angry about this. That conversation could wait for another time. Instead she went for the fridge and picked some bacon and eggs. She switched on the gas and started making Henry's breakfast. "Where is David?"

At that Henry turned towards her before sitting down on a stool at the kitchen counter. "He didn't wake up. I went to check in your room to see if you had come home but you weren't there and he was sleeping. He still had his clothes on."

He had probably forgotten to set his alarm. After everything that had happened the day before, she could very well understand that he would forget. Or maybe he had been waiting for her and had dozed off without meaning to. That would probably explain why he hadn't taken off his clothes. He usually made himself rather at home.

She grabbed a plate and put everything she had been cooking on it, feeling a little nauseous because of the smell but hiding it well. She put the plate in front of her son and leaned back on the counter, needing the help to stay up. "You'll have to take the bus today. I'm in no state to drive you."

"But I hate the bus, mom." Henry whined and Emma raised her eyebrows. His mother had come home completely exhausted and had still taken the time to make him breakfast and he was complaining because she couldn't drive him to school?

"Well, it's better than having an accident."

Henry was still pouting and Emma could see that it was hurting Regina. Apparently her tired state made it more difficult for her to hide her feelings because Emma could easily see everything, which had definitely not been the case the previous evening.

The ten-year-old looked up at her with an air of hope, as if she was the second parent to beg when he didn't get what he wanted. With horror she realized that this was probably what he was thinking. He was taking her for a parental figure when she made everything she could not to be one. However she could take advantage of the situation in this case. "Actually, I concur with you mom on that one, kid."

"But you could drive me."

Emma didn't know what to answer and Regina just rolled her eyes, tired of how this whole situation with Henry was escaping her. And there was nothing she could do about it. So she looked at Emma's gaping expression and sighed. "Just take him to school, Miss Swan. I'm going to bed." She went to kiss Henry's head on her way upstairs but thought better of it when she saw the look in his eyes. Instead she stopped a few feet away from him and smiled awkwardly. "I hope you have a good day at school. I'll see you tonight." She didn't even get a smile in response so she climbed up the stairs without looking back, fighting the tears that were threatening to fall.

She cautiously pushed the door to her room open and was hit by the image of a sleeping David sprawled on her bed. It made her smile. At least there was still one part of her life that was doing fine. She padded towards the bed, not even bothering to take off her clothes, and climbed into the bed to lie with her back pressed to his front. He moved in her sleep to accommodate her and a strong arm wrapped itself over her middle. She placed her arm over his and soon enough she had joined him in his deep sleep, her mind too tired to even dream.

Her dreamless sleeps were always the best ones. There was no Henry running away, no Miss Swan to play mother to him, no Gladys laying in an O.R. with her chest open, no Graham being a jerk, and most importantly nobody to remind her of the evil queen. It was just a quiet nothing, a little bit like the eye of a storm.

It was only with David's arms around her that she could reach that quiet place of nothingness, which was probably the main reason why she allowed him to spend most of his nights in her bed. Graham had been wrong, she didn't need adventure, she needed love. And there was only David offering that love to her.


	16. Chapter 16

_**A/N:** Another long chapter for you. I had originally planned for a lot more to happen in this chapter but this scene between David and Regina got a little bit out of hands and I didn't really want to rush the other things I had planned out so I decided to only do this scene. I hope it's not too fluffy._

_I do have a question for you though. In my head I had this perfect idea of Gladys turning out to be Ruth (David's mother) but I remembered a few days ago that she died in FTL, so it wouldn't really make sense. If you have any idea of who she could be in FTL, I'm open to suggestions. Just tell me in a review or send me a PM._

_Enjoy! :)_

* * *

Not so long after Regina had fallen asleep in his arms, David woke up to find her nestled there. He smiled at the sight before looking up at the clock. He was surprised to see that it was already 11 am. His first reaction was to panic but it soon went away when he realized that it was his day off. He then resorted to being confused. It didn't seem like he had slept that much. Actually he didn't even remember when he had fallen asleep, and judging by his clothes it hadn't been all conscious on his part.

He remembered waiting for Regina to come home from operating on Gladys. He had checked up on Henry, after a well-deserved glass of apple cider, and had found him sleeping peacefully. Or at least it seemed as if he was asleep. He could just have been pretending to avoid discussing his trip to Boston. David still didn't know him enough to see the difference and he had to hand it to the boy, he knew how to be sneaky. Then he only remembered going into Regina's bedroom and waiting there. Maybe lying on the bed to do so hadn't been the smartest idea though. Anyway, she was there now and it was all that mattered.

Another look at Regina told him that she wasn't ready to wake up quite yet. He wasn't sure he was ready to leave the comfort that she was bringing him either. However a low grumble coming from his stomach told him that he would have to do so unless he wanted to starve to death. He wondered when was the last time Regina had eaten. He couldn't remember her eating something the night before when they were waiting for Henry and knowing her she hadn't had anything since. She would probably be as starved as him when she would wake up.

With that in mind, he carefully unwrapped his arms from around her and slowly made its way out of the bed. The lack of reaction he got on the brunette's part comforted him in thinking that he could go to Granny's to get food and come back before she would wake up. After the day she had had the last thing he wanted was for her to wake up to an empty house.

His calculations were correct however, because when he came back into the room with a bag full of take-away food from Granny's, Regina still hadn't waken up. He went to sit by her side on the bed and watched her stir. Confident that she wasn't in a deep sleep, he started rubbing her forearm to wake her up.

It seemed to work as she slowly opened her eyes to meet his gaze. She blinked a few times before smiling at him.

"Good morning, Gina."

"Hi." Another bat of her eyelashes and he was done for. He couldn't resist her husky morning voice and her deep chocolate eyes. He leaned closer and gently pecked her lips. However he couldn't find it in him to pull away and he deepened the kiss instead, Regina only so glad to let him do just that. That is only until her nose caught something. She pushed him away with both hands and looked at him with a scolding tone. "You brought food into my bedroom?"

He had the decency to at least look a little sheepish. The idea that Regina might not like the idea of food in her bedroom had vaguely crossed his mind but he had dismissed it rather quickly. He loved eating in bed. "I thought you might be hungry."

"Still, I don't see why you had to bring it up here. Food is messy and has nothing to do in a bed."

"I know of other things that are messy and that you allow in your bed anyway." He winked at her but the harsh glare he received quickly wiped his smirk off his face. "Come on, just this one time. Try it and then if you don't like it, we won't do it ever again."

She looked at him as if she was thinking it over before finally rolling his eyes at his excited face. "Fine, but just for this time."

"Great. You won't regret it. There is nothing better than food in bed."

But just as he was about to reach for something in the bag he had brought back, Regina's hand landed on his arm and stopped him. "Now I'm the one who can think of other things to do in bed." He looked up towards her sultry voice to see that she was leaning on one of her elbows and was getting dangerously close. His gaze went to the bag of food, then back to Regina, and his decision was instantly made. There was indeed something better than food in bed. His stomach could wait anyway.

He crawled in her direction so that he was almost on top of her and watched her smirk. "You're naughty, Dr. Mills."

Her smirk only grew. "You have no idea." He didn't even get the chance to react that she had already switched their positions, flapping him on his back and pulling on his shirt to get him to take it off. He could have wondered about where her strength was coming from but he was too busy trying not to groan too much as she nipped and licked all over his torso. Her growing belly was pressing against his and it only added to his excitement.

She slowly traced a path up his throat with her teeth and tongue while grinding herself into him. "It's those damn hormones." She had reached his jaw and her hot breath made him shiver. "They make me so damn horny." Her mouth was on his ear now as she sucked on his earlobe the way she knew drove him mad.

He had finally found the use of his hands again and had started running them along her sides when they both heard a loud grumble coming from her stomach. David chuckled. "I guess they make you hungry too. That or baby doesn't like mummy jumping daddy."

"Well, _baby_ should better get used to it because he or she is the one that gets mummy all horny." Regina groaned and David laughed.

"We should probably eat though. It's almost been a whole day since you last ate and I can't let you go and starve yourself."

She reluctantly rolled herself off of him, knowing that he was right but annoyed at having to stop. Looking over in David's direction she noticed that he still hadn't made a move to sit up and grab the food. She raised her eyebrows in concern. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, you've just got to give me the time to cool off. You weren't the only one that got all excited there."

"It might be, but I wasn't the one who said we had to stop."

"My mind was the one that said we had to stop, not my body." He looked down to give his words more meaning and she couldn't help but burst out laughing.

"I guess I'll grab the food then, give you the time to... _cool off _and all." She was still laughing as she got out of the bed, making her way to the other side. She quickly found the bag of food and grabbed it. When she turned around she noticed David's aggravated expression and looked at him, confused. "What?"

"Could you maybe not roll your hips so much when you walk?"

Once again she let go of a loud laugh. With a glint in her eyes, she started walking back towards the bed while making sure to put some extra sway in her hips. "Like that, you mean?" He just groaned as an answer and she grinned, climbing into the bed. She found it really flattering that even in her unflattering – for lack of a better word – hospital clothing, she could still make him react this way.

Eventually they both settled against the headboard with the boxes of take-out on their lap, happy to settle their grumbling stomachs. Regina didn't make any comment on how inappropriate it was to eat in bed and David chose not to voice the fact that she seemed to be enjoying it. They just ate in silence, satisfied enough by being in the presence of each other.

As they were almost done with their meals, Regina stifled a yawn and David couldn't help but notice. Although she looked much better than the previous night, she still seemed tired. He had probably been the only one to enjoy a full night of rest. Still, he wanted to make sure. "When did you get home last night?"

She didn't even raise her eyes from her food and automatically answered. "Around half past seven, I think." Maybe if she had stopped to look up at the concern in his eyes she would have thought more carefully about her answer. But she didn't and just assumed that he was going for small talk. However she was quickly proved wrong.

"Half past seven in the morning? I'm aware of the fact that I don't know much about pregnancy but aren't you supposed to sleep a lot?"

She stopped her movements and looked him in the eyes. "And what was I supposed to do exactly? Gladys could have died, David. I wasn't going to say: _'No, thank you but I think I'll pass this time. You see, a pregnant lady needs her rest.'_ Or maybe that's what you wanted me to say?"

He completely ignored her sarcasm, used to it by now. "Still, I think you should cut off on work. It can't be good for the baby to have you overworked like that."

"I'm not overworked." Her tone was sharp and her eyes were hard. She didn't like people telling her what to do, no matter how good their intentions were. Moreover she seemed to be having that conversation a lot lately, and the repetition certainly didn't make it any less annoying.

David could see that he was threading dangerous waters but he wasn't ready to let go. If he had to fight Regina to keep her and the baby safe, he would do it without wavering and he would not give up that easily. So he fixed her a glare just as determinate as hers was, which was not such an easy task since hers was quite scary. "Tell me that again without yawning in the two minutes that follow."

He didn't get any answer this time, just the same annoyed eyes fixed on him. He could see that he wouldn't win this argument with his current strategy. She was far too stubborn to yield in a fight of wills. He would have to try another tactic. "Come on, Regina. Just try seeing this my way. I want to do everything I can to help you but I can't do anything if you're the one endangering yourself. It's really frustrating."

That seemed to set off something else entirely in Regina that she didn't even know was there to begin with. "Helping me? What about taking care of Henry when I'm not here? That's definitely something you could have done, but no! Miss Swan was the one to drive him to school!"

She could feel tears prickling at her eyes as she realized that the main person she was pissed at was the annoying blonde. She didn't want to pick a fight with David, she wanted to yell at the blonde for showing up in her life completely unannounced and threatening the already unstable state of things.

David deflated instantly at her words. He had been stupid not to set up an alarm. It had been irresponsible and he could see why she would be mad about it. Especially if it meant that Henry had spent even more time with his birth mother. His voice was lower when he finally spoke. "I'm sorry. I should have been there for him. I wasn't thinking."

The fight had also left her and she sighed. "It's okay. You just fell asleep. It happens. It happened to me several times in the past. Henry would have woken you up if he had really needed you. I know from experience that he knows very well how to do that." She set aside her almost empty container and rested her hands on her lap, fidgeting. "I'm just on edge because of this Emma Swan."

David nodded and set aside his container too, sensing that the brunette needed some comfort. He moved closer to her and slipped one arm around her shoulders, allowing her to lean into him. She eagerly did so and sighed, staring at the wall ahead of them. "I don't know what to do. I can't forbid him to spend time with her but I can't let him slip away like that."

He just rubbed her arm, not knowing what to do. Soon enough tears were soaking his T-shirt and Regina's tiny voice broke his heart. "I feel like he is replacing me."

David squeezed harder while trying to calm her. "Nobody can replace you, Regina. You're his mother, the one that has always been there for him and the one he can always count on. He's just curious. He wants to see where he comes from."

"It doesn't feel like curiosity to me. It feels like he is trying to find someone to save him from the clutches of the evil queen."

At this David reached her shoulder with his other arm and turned her slightly so that they were facing each other. "You're no evil queen, and Henry knows that. He loves you. I love you. A lot of people love you, and you would do well to remember that. As for Emma Swan, we'll figure it out together. But you've gotta stop being so damn insecure.

The brunette smiled through her tears, not really convinced but feeling slightly better. She wiped away her tears and chuckled softly. "Damn, these hormones really turn me into one awful mess."

The change in conversation was welcomed and David chuckled too. "One beautiful mess."

"You're just saying that so I won't cry again."

"Maybe. Or maybe I truly do believe that you're the most amazing woman I've ever met and that in all circumstances. Even were your eyes are all red and puffy and you're yelling at me over small things." He wiped her remaining tears away with his thumbs to outline his words before reluctantly pulling his hands away.

She looked at him with wide eyes and shook her head. "God, you're one cheesy Prince Charming."

His smile didn't falter at her obvious mockery. He was glad that she was back in a good mood, however disconcerting the mood swings might be. "The spit of the toad doesn't reach the white dove." She threw him a quizzical look and he laughed. "That's a French expression. It basically means that I couldn't care less about your criticism."

"It _basically means _that you called me a toad while you called yourself a dove."

Her playful angry glare was enough to make him blush and he handed her a piece of apple pie instead of digging himself a deeper hole. "Just eat."

She laughed at the distraction and opened the lid of the container, taking one bite of Granny's apple pie. After a few seconds of chewing on it, she put the fork down. "Granny can say all she wants but my apple pie is way better than hers."

"I don't doubt it."

There was that twinkle in his eye and that stupid smile on his face and Regina immediately understood what he was really saying. So she did what he had been expecting and rolled her eyes. "Do get your mind out of the gutter, dear. I feel like I'm dating a horny teenager."

"If I recall correctly I wasn't the horny one an hour ago."

"At least _I _can blame it on the pregnancy."

"And I can blame it on you being way too sexy." When he didn't hear her protesting to his words he took the container out of her hands and grabbed her waist so he could pull her lower in the bed and push her on her back. She yelped at the movement but didn't stop him. He took it as an encouragement to go further and captured hers lips with his own, nipping at her bottom lip with his teeth. She quickly took the hint and parted her lips to let his tongue dance against hers.

When they parted for air, David went to work on her throat, getting lower and lower with each nip and kisses. He quickly reached the top of her breasts and tried to take off her shirt to get a better access but she pushed his hands away. He stopped his ministrations and let her sit back up, following her lead and sitting back up too.

"I have to go to the hospital and check on Gladys. She is probably awake by now. And Whale didn't get any chance to sleep last night either. I really need to go to the hospital and check on our patients."

"You're sure you don't want to sleep a little more?"

"This was not going in the direction of me getting more sleep." David smirked in response but she could see what he meant and she wanted to show him that she didn't ignore his previous complaints completely. She had snapped without reason earlier and she wanted him to know that. "Don't worry, it's just to check up on some patients. I'm going to figure something out so that I don't have to work as much as I usually do. You're right. This baby is taking more energy out of me that I want to admit."

He smiled at her confession, glad that he had been heard. "Thank you. And I'm going to try and help you more. For real this time. I could start by picking up Henry after school if you want to."

"That would be great, yes. But maybe instead of taking him home, you could take him to the hospital and we could do an ultrasound. Maybe we could find out if it's a girl or a boy. I know you wanted to be there last time."

"I would like that very much. And I'm sure Henry would to. He would love to meet his sibling."

Regina nodded as she got out of the bed and headed for the bathroom. David followed after her and watched her get ready. He was engrossed by the vision of her belly, still not believing that his child was growing in there. It might have been Gold's but still, he couldn't help but consider this baby as his fully and he was glad for that. The idea of his child being Gold's was definitely not something he wanted in his mind every time he would look at Regina's growing belly.

He was shaken out of his thoughts by Regina clearing her throat. "You're staring."

He met her eyes in the mirror and just smiled. He knew she didn't really mind. If anything she was flattered. She just wanted him to get out of his thoughtful state, maybe even tell her what he was thinking. But that was not something he wanted to share, so he stirred the conversation elsewhere. "What do you want to do about Henry's birth mother?"

She finished brushing her teeth and spat in the sink before turning towards him. "I don't really know. I don't like the fact that I know absolutely nothing about her though. I might ask Graham to do a background check."

"Are you sure it's wise to ask him?"

"Don't tell me you're still jealous."

"No, that's not it." David laughed and rubbed his neck, not knowing how she would take what he was about to say. Probably not really well, she hated people spreading rumors. "Don't get mad but there is this rumor going around town that you slapped him at the hospital. It was all everyone could talk about at Granny's when I went there."

Regina was silent for a moment before her expression hardened. "I told her not to say anything. I'm going to kill her."

David's brows knitted. "Who?"

"Emma Swan."

"I get that you don't like her but I don't think she was the one spreading the word. Apparently everyone at the hospital saw it and you know how much they like gossip."

She didn't like to admit it but David was probably right. She didn't know the woman but it was far more likely for the hospital staff to have been the ones recounting the story around town. She sighed and rubbed at her brow before looking up at David. "You're not mad?"

"About you slapping Graham? If anything that would make me happy. I don't know what happened but I'm sure he deserved it. No, I really had nothing against that part."

"Because there is another part?"

David winced at his slip-up, but went on to telling her anyway. She deserved to know what people were saying about her in town. "Well, they've got a pretty big imagination and they were looking for a story to go with the slap. Some people noticed that you had gained some weight and deduced that you were pregnant. Until there they would have been right. However they think that Graham was the one to get you pregnant and that you two had a disagreement about this surprise pregnancy, hence the slapping."

Another sigh left her lips. "The perks of living in a small town, I guess."

David nodded. He knew that rumors like this one were bound to happen in a town like Storybrooke but he didn't like that people thought that Regina was having Graham's child. He already had enough problems with Gold.

Regina watched him curiously, trying to decipher his expression. She was used to people talking behind her back and making up crazy stories. It was unavoidable when you kept your private life a secret. They didn't like not knowing anything about her so they were making it up, trying to go from what they did know. However David didn't seem as used to it. "You're mad."

"No, not really, but I don't like that they are thinking that. I want them to know that you're mine and that we're going to have this baby together."

She smiled at his possessiveness. Some time ago she would have cringed at him calling her his but now it felt good. She found it rather cute actually. She stepped out of the bathroom and grabbed some fresh clothes. Once she was sure he had followed her into the room she started talking again. "What about a date tomorrow night? I'll wear a tight dress and go to Granny's holding your arm. We'll sit in a booth where everyone can see us and show them all that there is nobody else I'd rather be with than you."

"And I get to kiss you passionately at the door to shut them up?"

"Maybe not too passionately, but yes, you get to kiss me in front of everyone."

He knew that it was a lot coming from her and that she wouldn't do it if she didn't think it meant so much to him. He was surprised by the fact that she knew him so well. However he was truly glad that she was ready to put her hate for public displays of affection aside so that they could put an end to all the rumors going around town.

He placed his arms around her waist and stared into her eyes, trying to show her how much he liked her for offering that. "Thank you. I promise I'll make it up to you."

"I'm sure you will." She pecked his lips before looking him over and grinning. "I can already think of a few ways."

He quickly caught on and leaned forward to capture her lips only to be denied. "I really do have to go."

With a last smile in his direction she was gone and David was left with the burning desire of running his hands everywhere on her body and kissing her senseless. He chuckled, this woman would be the death of him.


	17. Chapter 17

_**A/N:** Funnily enough, I'm more busy during the holidays than during the school year. Or maybe it's just that I had some trouble with this chapter. I'm still not entirely satisfied with it, to be truthful. I had a lot more planned for it too but it was starting to get long and since I'm leaving tomorrow I assumed that I had made you wait long enough already. I won't have my computer for a whole week since I'm going to a debating competition but I'll try bringing a notebook to see if I can write the next chapter there (I doubt it)._

_Anyway I hope you enjoy this chapter and thank you to .Winter for helping me with my decision of who Gladys should be in FTL. Don't forget to review, it's always grandly appreciated._

* * *

Regina entered Gladys' room to find the older woman's daughter picking up her things. She recognized her as one of the cooks from her palace kitchens. She had never really gotten invested in her servants' life but she knew most of their life stories. She knew that Helen had lost most of her family in a fire caused by a maniac whom Leopold had not deemed dangerous enough to lock up. That's why the woman hadn't been opposed to the idea of working for his supposed murderer as most of the people from the Enchanted Forrest would have been.

Regina was glad that the curse had supplied her with a family, especially with a mother as nice and loving as Gladys. She couldn't help but think that some people were better off in this world than in the other. But maybe thinking so was only a way for her to assuage her guilt over uprooting the entire Enchanted Forrest in her rage. Some would have said that it had been a little bit excessive.

But still, they had all gained running water, an effective medicine, phones, cars... They had forgotten the horrors of their past. Helen had gained a mother, even though Regina would have preferred being the one gaining a real mother. Although at the time it would have felt like she was replacing the father she had killed and it didn't sit well with her.

She shook these thoughts out of her head as Helen greeted her. It never did her any good to think of her father's death. There was too much self-loathing there. And if her resolve not to think about it wasn't enough to prevent her from doing so, the hug she received from Helen did the job pretty well.

She still wasn't used to people acting this way towards her and if she had to count the number of people who had hugged her, genuinely hugged her, in fairytale land, she was sure that one hand would be more than enough. However she wasn't in the Enchanted Forrest anymore, so instead of pulling away, she awkwardly placed both her hands on the woman's back and moved them in a comforting gesture.

Once Helen pulled away, Regina noticed the bright smile she was sporting and found herself wishing that more people would look at her this way. This was why she had casted the curse after all.

"Thank you so much for operating on my mother last night. Dr Whale told us that he couldn't have done it without your help. I don't know how to thank you."

"That's alright. I was merely doing my job."

"Still-"

Gladys interrupted the conversation with a soft chuckle. "Let it go, darling. Dr Mills isn't known to be one to take a compliment easily."

Regina was about to protest when she realized that it was probably true. She might act the part of the over-confident woman but it was just to cover up all the self-loathing under it. If it was more because of what her mother had kept telling her, or because of the evil queen part of her life, she didn't know, but the result was that she never felt like she deserved any praise.

She didn't know if Gladys had noticed or if she was just joking around though, so she just smiled in response and Helen did the same before finishing putting on her coat.

"Well, I have to go back to work but I'm happy to see you're okay, mom." She then turned towards Regina. "Good bye, Dr Mills, and thank you again." With that she left the room and Regina was left to check up on Gladys.

As she approached the bed, she could see the old lady looking her up and down before focusing on her protruding belly with an excited smile.

After her discussion with David earlier in the day she had decided to stop hiding the fact that she was pregnant and to fully embrace it instead. That's why she was wearing her lab coat open with a tight red blouse underneath, her baby bump more than visible. It had begun to be difficult to hide it anyway.

When Gladys finally met her gaze, there was a reprimanding look in her eyes and Regina instantly wondered if she had done something wrong. However this was short-lived as she could hear that her tone was more playful than truly scolding. "I can't believe you let it go this long without giving me any news! I might have to get sick more often to hear from you and the baby."

"Absolutely not! You gave me quite the scare last night and you'd better not do it ever again." When she saw that Gladys was joking, she felt a little bit stupid but the last thing she wanted was to see the old lady in an hospital bed again. "I'm sorry for not calling. I had a lot going on."

Gladys gave her a small sympathetic smile. "I can imagine. I'm assuming that you openly showing off your pregnancy means that you told the potential fathers."

"Yes, but that's not even half of it."

The old lady arched an eyebrow in question, obviously waiting for the brunette to develop but Regina just shook her head. "How about you let me check up on you first and then I'll answer all your questions? That way I will feel like I am at least a little bit professional."

Gladys chuckled before nodding. "Sure." However she didn't pay much attention to what Regina was doing with her stethoscope, too busy that she was staring intently at the brunette's belly. She didn't know why but she was as excited for this baby as she remembered being for her grandchildren. The brunette was definitely growing on her.

Once Regina was done she went to scribble some things in her patient's chart before sitting down on the chair next to the old lady's bed. There was a smile she couldn't hide on her face. "From what I've heard, it seems like you're out of the woods. We might have to monitor you a little bit longer, but that's just to be safe."

"Then you'll have plenty of time to answer all of my questions!"

They both laughed before Regina set down her chart and braced herself. She sighed. "Shoot." Actually, she was quite happy to talk about everything with Gladys. She didn't feel comfortable discussing such serious matters with Whale and David was too involved sometimes to really be able to hear everything she could have wanted to say. Gold was still a subject to avoid between the two of them and she wondered if it would change someday. Probably not with the way the imp was acting.

Gladys sat up a little more and got ready to ask everything that she had wanted to ask since she had found out about Regina's pregnancy. "First, I think I'm entitled to know who the two potential fathers are by now. I promise I won't judge, I'm just curious."

Well, it was a reasonable request, even though the brunette was still reluctant to admit her moment of weakness with Gold. This was definitely not one of her proudest moments and she hated that she might have a living reminder of it. That's why she decided to stall a little. "It might be David Nolan's baby. You know, the veterinarian. We are kind of dating now and he says he will care for the baby, no matter who the father truly is."

Gladys thought for a few seconds and a big smile appeared on her face. "I remember him. He is a really nice guy. I'm so happy you two are dating." But the stalling could only last so long before Gladys noticed that Regina had failed to mention the other option. She grew more serious as she realized that the other one was probably the reason she had hesitated to tell her in the first place. But she wanted to know anyway. "And the other possibility?"

"Mr Gold. I probably don't even need to tell you who he is."

"Indeed. The evil king of the rent."

Regina almost laughed out loud at the nickname. It was really ironic. He had always been the one behind the evil queen and had never gotten the true recognition for it, and now he was the one being seen as the true evil one. Maybe there was some justice in this world.

The old lady frowned at the information. Somehow she couldn't see the two of them getting together. She could see them fighting alright, with Regina's sometimes fiery character it wasn't really a stretch. But sleeping together? It didn't seem right.

Her frown didn't go unnoticed by Regina. She was disappointed in the older woman's reaction, not that she should have expected anything else but still, it stung. "You promised you wouldn't judge."

She sounded so much like a child when saying this that Gladys' heart clenched. The last thing that she wanted was to upset the brunette, and she could see how her reaction could be seen as offensive. So she tried to make up for it by grabbing the younger woman's hand, who was reluctant to allow the gesture but did it anyway, and met her eyes with her most sincere expression. "I'm not. I'm just surprised. You got yourself in a little bit of a mess."

Regina chuckled at the phrasing. "I guess you could say that, yes."

"How did he react?"

The brunette bit her lip before answering. She had tried to forget her encounter with him because she couldn't shake off the bad feeling it gave her. If he didn't agree with her decision, he would do something to change it. He was not one to let things go, twisting everything until he could get what he wanted instead. She had known him for quite a long time and by now she knew his ways, which did nothing to assuage her worries about the whole situation.

"Not well. He is sure that this is his child's and he doesn't want David to raise it. I think he really wants to be its father for some reason."

"That's weird. He doesn't seem like the paternal type."

"He is not."

Regina's quick answer and the harsh tone she used told Gladys that there was much more going on between the two of them that the brunette was letting on but she didn't want to push her. And she wasn't sure about how she would react to more information about their relationship. The no judging policy would falter quite rapidly and she didn't want to break the trust Regina had put in her. So it was probably better to drop it there.

"You said earlier that it wasn't even half of it. What's the other thing?"

"Henry's birth mother is in town."

Even though the brunette's tone was quite monotonous and void of any feelings, the older woman could feel all the pain lacing the words. This was probably one of Regina's worst nightmares. "How did she get here?"

"Henry went to look for her last night. In Boston."

Gladys' eyebrows went up to her hairline. She couldn't see how the kid would have thought that it was a good idea to go to Boston to look for someone he had never met and how he had pulled it off. He had always seemed like a smart kid. Regina was surely not exaggerating when she told her that they had some problems. Only an upset kid would do something like that.

But she couldn't blame Regina either. She could see that she loved her son very much and she had raised him well. Even though she had a straining job, she knew that the brunette did her best to take good care of the boy. There must have been something or someone from the exterior to influence the kid to do something like that.

And then there was the fact that it all happened last night that made Gladys feel a little bit guilty. Of course she hadn't chosen to have a heart attack at that exact moment, but she was aware that it was probably the worst timing for Regina. However she knew better than to apologize for it. It wasn't what the younger woman needed and she would just deny it anyway, telling her that it was never a bother to help her and that there was never a bad moment for it.

So instead of wasting their time with useless conversation she decided to voice her doubts concerning Henry's sudden idea to go and look for his birth mother. "How did he know to look for her in Boston? How did he even know her name?"

Regina's brow creased. She hadn't even had the time to ask herself these questions and now that she did, she wasn't sure she could answer them.

Gladys saw the perplexed look on the brunette's face and it confirmed her suspicions. There was definitely something weird about the whole thing. "It was a closed adoption, right?" Regina only nodded in response, still mulling over the ways he could have found out. "Meaning even you doesn't know anything about his birth mother?" Regina nodded once again. Gladys leaned her head to the side, curiosity hidden behind her eyes. "Who knows?"

"The people who were involved in the process I guess." Her head snapped upwards suddenly when something crossed her mind. "Gold. Henry talked with him not so long ago. He even went to his house."

The old lady thought the information over. It was obvious that Gold had been the one to tell him. What she couldn't understand was the reason why he would do something like that. From what she had understood he was upset with Regina about David raising the baby, but still, doing something like that just to irk her seemed a little bit excessive. And it definitely wasn't going to change anything about her refusal to let him be a father figure to her child. If anything, it would do the exact opposite.

Regina went through the same thought process at first but quickly thought of something else considering that she knew a lot more than Gladys. She had already had her suspicions when she had learned about the older woman's heart attack. Time was moving forward again, people were able to die from natural causes again. It could mean only one thing, the curse was breaking. And it suddenly didn't seem to be such a coincidence anymore that Emma Swan had come into town at that exact moment. Regina could swear that she had something to do with the end of the curse.

But why would Gold want to break the curse? Especially when he had been the one creating it. She should have seen it coming though. He knew that the curse breaking would mean the end of her relationship with David and lately that was something he was surely looking for. But something told her that this wasn't the only reason. It didn't seem big enough, even though it was probably a perk for him.

"I'm going to kill him."

Gladys looked up in surprise. She had never heard Regina sound so menacing. Her tone alone was enough to send chills down everybody's spine, and her eyes were really dark and threatening. She was tensed and had her hands balled into fists and seeing her white knuckles, the older woman was sure she was drawing blood.

She knew that the brunette's anger would only grow the more she would let her alone with her thoughts and this knowledge unsettled her, so she grabbed both the woman's hands and forced her fists open. Regina seemed to realize what she had been doing and the anger in her eyes instantly faded away. She couldn't let herself be the queen. There were too many people she would hurt by doing so, herself probably at the top of the list.

She took a deep breath before talking. "This is just so low of him. I can't believe he would do that."

Gladys didn't let go of her hands and started to rub her thumbs over Regina's knuckles in a soothing motion. "I know."

"I don't know what to do about it."

"At this point there is not much you can do, except dealing with Henry's feelings about finding his birth mother. The deed is done and there is no point in starting a war with Mr. Gold."

She was right. It was what she would have done at another point in time, but she had changed. Or at least that was what she would like to think, because honestly there was nothing she wanted more right now than to get back at him. But she would think about that later, for now she just smiled to Gladys, hoping it seemed at least a little bit genuine. She appreciated the old lady trying to keep her on the right track, even if Gladys didn't know just how much it was needed.

* * *

The afternoon quickly went away as Regina visited her patients. For the most part they were good and there wasn't so much consequences of time having started again. She was glad for that because she already had a lot to deal with and she didn't need to have her workload increasing in top of everything else, especially since she had promised David that she would slow down on her work.

Just as she was thinking about him, she saw him walking in her direction with a big smile, Henry in tow. His eyes instantly fell to her stomach, glad that she was finally showing her pregnancy to the world. His hand instinctively went for it and she smiled at the gesture. Henry looked at them curiously but didn't comment.

When Regina met his gaze, she smiled at him tentatively and he tried responding, however awkward it looked. David had once again told him to try and give her a chance but he was confused about his feelings. Sometimes when he looked at her he would see his mother, the one who had always cared for him, but some other times he couldn't help but see the Evil Queen from his book and he hated her, though he didn't know why exactly. He didn't know if it was because he hated the bad person that she was, or because she was hiding it from him, or if it was for another reason entirely.

However he was shaken out of his thoughts by his mother's voice. Not the Evil Queen, but his mother. There was no way he would ever associate that uncertain voice to the villain from his book. "So you're ready to meet your little brother or sister?"

He nodded and seemed genuinely excited about it, which made Regina's smile all the more genuine too. David noticed and he reveled in the happiness emanating from her, even if he could sense that there was something bothering her. He didn't know for sure but she seemed a little bit different from this morning. However this was not the time to ask her so he put her hand on her lower back and guided her to the examination room.

"You get yourself comfortable and I'll get Dr. Whale so he can do the ultrasound."

Regina chuckled at his tone. "You almost sound like you're the doctor. Don't forget that you're on my territory here."

He shook his head at her antics and left the room to go and find Whale, leaving Henry and Regina alone together for the first time since the ten-year-old had run away.

Regina went to sit on the examination bed and Henry took a seat next to it. He knew that she would want to talk about the previous day and he was a little bit nervous about it. He was aware that what he had done had been dangerous and he knew that her mother had been really upset about it. He hadn't believed it at first but when even Mary Margaret had told him so, he hadn't been able to do anything else but accept it.

So before she could say anything, he lowered his voice and said what he should have already told her the previous night. "I'm sorry, mom."

It was definitely not what Regina had been expecting and she found herself at a loss for words. She expected a fight, not an apology. She expected to be called the evil queen, not mom. Henry saw the confusion on her face and felt a little bit guilty for it. He sure hadn't given her any reason lately to think this could be true.

"I should not have gone to Boston without telling you anything. I know that I got you worried and I'm sorry. And I'm sorry for bringing Emma without telling you either." He was actually surprised by how that particular part had gone. He had been expecting for his mother to get really angry about that fact and to throw Emma out, especially since she could break her curse. But her mother had actually let Emma drive her to the hospital and she had let her take him to school. This was definitely not what he had been expecting and it actually was a nice surprise.

"Thank you, Henry. I appreciate you telling me that. But you know that it doesn't change the fact that you will be grounded, right?"

He sheepishly lowered his head, knowing that he had deserved it, even if he had hoped that his apology would maybe do the trick. Not that he had said it solely on the purpose of not being grounded, but it would have been nice. "I know."

They were interrupted by Whale and David walking into the room, both looking excited about the ultrasound to come. Regina turned back to Henry and squeezed his hand. "We'll talk about it later. Let's just concentrate on the baby for now, okay?"

"Okay." He looked at all the happy faces around the room before looking at the way his mother was looking at David while rubbing her belly. Maybe this was not so bad after all.

"And mom?" She turned her head towards him, showing him that she was listening. "I'm glad you're having this baby."


	18. Chapter 18

_**A/N:** Hmmm... I'm late with this update. Really late. And I'm sorry about that but it's that time of the year where you have to do so many things and your chapters just won't write themselves up. I hope you will at least be satisfied with this chapter and that you'll be happy with what I decided for the baby. Don't forget to comment, I love to hear what you think of the story so far and where you want it to go. :)_

* * *

As the room grew silent, three pairs of eyes looked expectantly at Whale's hand on the ultrasound wand. He finally closed the gap between where he was holding it and Regina's belly and the breaths of everyone in the room caught. You could hear the heartbeat of the baby and they all found it to be mesmerizing.

Soon enough they all turned their gaze to the screen and couldn't help the grins spreading on their faces. The baby was all curled up and even though it wasn't fully formed, they were still able to distinguish most of it.

David reached for Regina's hand and squeezed it. This baby might have been a surprise but it was a more than welcome one. He still had his doubts sometimes, but this moment was enough to show him that wherever this was going, it was going to be great.

Regina was pulled out of her staring by the gesture. She turned her gaze from the screen to David's face and her heart missed a beat at the happiness she could see shining in his eyes. The knowledge that she, the former evil queen, was the one to have brought that happiness, it was overwhelming.

She was still afraid of hurting him, still thinking that she didn't deserve him, but that look… It was enough to show her that maybe it was all in her head. Maybe they could truly be happy together.

Henry, however, didn't catch all the realizations that seemed to have happened in the few last minutes, his gaze still fixed on the screen. Eventually he turned towards Whale, an expectant look on his face. "So, what is it? Boy or girl?"

Whale grinned when he saw Regina's beaming face. He could tell that she had figured it out. After all she too was a doctor, and more often than not a better one than him at that. Henry caught the silent exchange between the two and focused his attention on his mother, knowing that Whale wanted her to announce it.

The look that Henry directed at her in that instant made her heart clench. It had been a long time since the last time he had looked at her that way, as if she was holding the answers to all the questions he could ever have. It made her want to prolong this moment, just so that she could look at his expectant face a little while longer, imprint it in her memory. But she also couldn't wait to tell them so she spilled the news anyway. "It's a girl. You're going to have a little sister."

It meant more to her that they would ever know. It brought her back to a time where she had been happy, at least for a little while. To something that had ended up being ripped from her, but wasn't it how it went for everything that could give her her happy ending anyway?

She had been pregnant once, before the all asking Rumple to take that possibility away from her. And she had been happy about it. It had been Daniel's child. A young woman's mistake that had soon turned into her saving grace after her lover's murder. If she couldn't have Daniel anymore, at least she could have a little piece of him to remember him by.

But it hadn't lasted very long. Not even a few months had gone by before she woke up in a pool of her own blood, the last bit of her innocence leaving her along with the last thing she ever could have loved. It would have been a girl, she was sure of it. And she would have loved her so much.

Sometimes, when life at the castle was becoming too hard to bear, she would dream of what it would have been like to raise her daughter. It was strange because she had been taken from her like everything else (probably by her mother's magic too, if she thought about it) and thinking about her should have saddened her more than anything else, but it brought her comfort. She had thought for a long time that it was because she was delusional but now she wondered if it wasn't because somehow she knew that she would get her daughter someday.

She wasn't ready to talk about it though, so she kept her musings to a minimum. Sometimes she felt like David could read through her like an open book and that was something she didn't want him to find out. Not because she didn't trust him with the information, but because it would open too many dams. Talking about her mother, Daniel or anything else from her past with him, or anybody for that matter, wasn't really in her plans.

Fortunately nobody noticed where her thoughts had gone, too busy that they were being excited about the news. David was still fixing the screen, a stupid smile gracing his features and Whale was not any better. He was probably the least concerned about the baby growing in his best friend's belly but somehow he couldn't tear his eyes away from the cuteness of it.

As for Henry, he realized that he was relieved. He had no idea about where it was coming from but somehow he had been afraid of being replaced. He didn't want for his mother to have another boy, one of her own who would be perfect and who wouldn't try to break her curse. He didn't want to be thrown away just because his mother had found someone to replace him. It was weird in a way because lately he hadn't wanted to be her son anymore. Although he still probably wanted to be if he was afraid that somebody would take his place.

But somehow it didn't feel like that with a girl.

It felt as if he would have a little sister to protect and take care of. As if their family was growing and his sister was going to have a place of her own in it, a place he hadn't known needed filling before now.

It was David that pulled them all out of their thoughts. "We'll have to find a name for her."

"Clara." Regina hadn't even noticed her lips moving before it was out. That was how she always referred to the daughter she could have had. _Bright_ in Latin, her light in the darkness that her life had become.

If David was surprised by the immediate answer, he didn't show it. He actually really liked the name and didn't bother with asking for the reasoning behind it. It was perfect. He looked at the baby on the screen one more time before trying it out. "Clara. I like it. What do you think, Henry? Is Clara okay with you?"

The ten-year-old was surprised of being asked for his opinion. He still was a little bit unsure of the place he had in their new family. A weird family if he was right about the curse, but his family nonetheless. As he realized that a smile came to his lips. "I love it. I can't wait to meet her for real."

"Me too, kid."

"Oh, I think that you won't find anyone who wants that more than me. You're not the ones whose bladder is being crushed because of her, who are tired all of the time and who are starting to look like a cow." They all laughed at Regina's ranting of how pregnancy was no fun at all, even though they all could see that it made her happier than she had been for the past years. Pregnancy looked good on her and she was the only one not to see it.

"And I'm looking forward to doing the delivery." Although he seemed pretty confident about it, Whale's smile froze when he saw the glare that Regina threw at him.

"There is no way you're getting anywhere near my... private parts."

Henry made a face at the mention, it was definitely something he didn't want to be thinking about. Fortunately for him his mother hadn't forgotten that he was in the room, or else she would have used a more direct vocabulary that he was surely not looking forward to hearing.

"Do you know anyone else to do the job? You won't be able to do it yourself, that's for sure."

Regina was about to protest some more when she realized that he was right. He would have to be the one to do it. Suddenly she wasn't so much looking forward to the birth of her baby anymore. "Fine, but you'd better not enjoy it."

"Deliveries are not that pleasant anyway, I might just end up scarred for life."

"If you don't stop talking about that right now, I'll get up from this table and strangle you myself."

"You're always so nice, Regina."

She answered his sarcastic grin by her usual smirk. She had always loved their easy banter. "I do my best."

Whale was about to answer and David and Henry were looking at him with amused expressions when they heard the door being opened and the known thudding of a cane coming through. They all tensed upon recognizing Gold entering the room, all except for Henry. He was the only one to be really surprised. "Mr Gold? What are you doing here?"

"Well, I heard that your mom was having an ultrasound and I thought I should be there."

Henry's brow furrowed. "Why?"

Gold opened his mouth to answer him but Regina interrupted him before he could give away anything that she wasn't ready for Henry to hear. "You're not welcome here, Gold."

"But I think I am." It was just as curt and authoritative as she had been, showing that she wasn't the only strong-willed person in the room.

They stared at each other without blinking for what appeared to be a really long time for the other people in the room. Eventually, when she saw that he wasn't going to bulge from his position, Regina started wiping the gel off her belly before pulling her shirt down and looking at Henry. "Why don't you go and wait outside with Whale while David and I talk to Gold?"

She could have tried to make David leave too, but somehow she didn't think he would appreciate it. She knew that he didn't like the idea of her being alone with Gold, even if she didn't know if it was more out of jealousy or out of his instinct to protect her. Probably a little bit of both. Gold was not one to be trusted either way.

But Henry wasn't really keen on leaving either. He was curious about what was going on between his mother and the pawnshop owner, and he couldn't help but think that it had something to do with the curse. So naturally, he wanted to say. However, Regina didn't see it this way at all and when she looked at him this time, there was something final in her words that made him comply. "Henry, I need you to wait outside."

Whale followed him out, leaving David and Regina with Gold. The blonde doctor didn't like it one bit but he knew that he had no right to be there for that confrontation. Once more he wished that Regina would never have slept with the shady man. He still didn't get why she had done it. But as he noticed Henry's suspicious expression, he schooled his features into a more neutral expression. It was pretty obvious that his mother didn't want him to know this part of the situation and he wasn't going to be the one to spill the beans.

Meanwhile, in the examination room, Regina had managed to readjust her clothes and she was now standing next to David, arms crossed over her chest in a defensive stance. "What are you doing here?"

"I came to see my child."

"It's not yours, Gold." Her words sounded so final that David almost believed her when she said it. But then he remembered that she had no way of really knowing it, which Gold probably knew too because he just brushed her off, not even flinching.

"You don't know that, dearie."

"It doesn't matter anyway because you're not the father I want for my child. I'm raising this baby with David."

"I will not let my child be raised by a shepherd."

"Hey! I'm a veterinarian."

However David could as well have been talking Chinese for Gold didn't even acknowledge that he had said something. He was talking about something else entirely anyway and he didn't expect the cursed version of Prince Charming to understand anything. What mattered was that he reached Regina.

"If I may say, it's not much better than a stable boy. If only your mother knew-"

Regina stalked towards him aggressively, taking David by surprise and making Gold smirk with insane glee. "Don't you dare."

"Because we all know what happened the last time I dared. Wouldn't want for that to happen again now, dearie?"

She was practically seething in his face now. "It will _never_ happen again."

"You've never been good at predicting the future, Regina." He let the end of what he wanted to say hang in the air between them._ Whereas I've always been able to foresee the future._

David was really confused now. He was already aware that there was a lot he didn't know about Regina, but what was new to him was that Gold seemed to know quite a lot more than him. And apparently he knew which buttons to push too. David found himself wondering exactly what the extent of their relationship was. He had never thought there was much going on between the doctor and the pawnshop owner but apparently they had known each other for quite a while, judging by the mention of Regina's mother who was said to have passed away a very long time ago.

"Maybe not, but what I can tell you is that you won't have any part in raising my daughter."

Gold decided to ignore the part where she was once again denying his rights as a father to focus on the information she had just let slip. "Oh, a daughter it is. I wonder if she'll be as eager to learn from me as you were. If she'll ask me to get rid of her mother like you did. Wouldn't that be ironic?"

"I'm nothing like my mother. This child will be loved." The silence that followed her statement gave her the confirmation of what she had never wanted to admit. Gold seemed to have known her mother better than anyone and even him wasn't trying to deny that Cora had never loved her daughter.

By that point Regina had completely forgotten the presence of David in the room, or else she would never have said as much as she had. Rumple was the only person with whom she ever talked of her mother, and even then it was rarely coming from her. The lack of real love and acceptance coming from her mother had always hurt her more than anything else. She still didn't get how her mother could have killed her true love and made her marry a man more than twice her age. It wasn't right. No mother should be able to do that and it had gotten even clearer to her when she had gotten Henry. She could never do that to him.

Speaking of Henry and his mother, his birth mother more precisely, she remembered what she had discovered when speaking with Gladys earlier in the afternoon. Another reason to hate the man in front of her. She was ready to yell at him for that too when she remembered what Gladys had told her. There was no point in starting a war with Gold now. However she could at least let him know that she knew what he had done, that way he would know that he wouldn't get away with it that easily. If there was one thing she was known to be good at, it was holding grudges.

"I don't like you intervening in my children's lives. Any of my children."

"What do you mean, dearie?"

"I think you know exactly what I mean."

"You might have to enlighten me."

"Let's just say that I know Henry didn't find Miss Swan on his own."

A look of recognition seemed to pass over Gold's features. He actually didn't know if he preferred her knowing his part in the situation or not. On one hand her not knowing meant that she would not suspect that Emma Swan was anything more than Henry's mother, on the other hand he liked the fact that she would know that he could still mess up her life quite easily. And what could she do to stop the savior anyway?

All in all it was even better for her to know his involvement in it. He was reasserting his power over a situation that Regina had no say in. She would have to look at the curse breaking and her happiness fleeing away from her without being able to do anything to stop it, and she would know that it was because of him. She might have been the one uprooting them all from the Enchanted Forest, but he was still the one holding the reins.

The main problem was that there was even less chances for her to acknowledge his parental rights now. But it would be easily fixed once the curse would be broken and she would find herself alone and hunted by all the people of Storybrooke, even the one she now called friends and family. She would see that he was the only one to ever accept her for who she was and Bae would get a family.

David watched the scene unfold from the side and he couldn't help but be more and more surprised. He had learnt more about Regina's childhood in a few minutes than he had in all the time he had known her and he could understand why she didn't talk about it more often. It didn't sound like something one would want to share.

But that revelation was not so surprising (he had always guessed that her past hadn't been a walk in the park) compared to what Regina was implying right now. And Gold wasn't denying the accusation. "You're the one who told him about Emma?"

"I just answered the questions of a curious child, Mr Nolan. Wouldn't you have done the same?"

"Without talking to his mother first? No, I certainly wouldn't have."

"Well, we're a little bit different then." There was absolutely no apology in his tone, just mischief. "And I can assure you that Regina is a lot more like me than she is like you."

David scoffed. "I highly doubt it." However he didn't catch the way his lover's eyes suddenly grew sad. Because Rumpelstiltskin was right, she certainly resembled him on more points than one. It hadn't been true when she had been young and untouched, but once he had been done with teaching her, the truth couldn't be denied anymore. He had made of her his monster. His puppet who would firmly believe that everything she was doing was of her own free will, that she liked every bit of it and that toying with people was just something that would bring her happiness.

"You can deny it all you want, Mr Nolan, but it won't change the fact that it's true."

"And you can say anything about her, _Mr Gold_, but it won't change the fact that she is ten times better than you'll ever be."

The older man was actually surprised by the love and admiration he could see in the shepherd's eyes. He wouldn't have thought it possible to see such a devoted look in the eyes of someone talking about his former student. Or at least from someone not being under any kind of spell. Although the curse could be seen as some sort of spell. Maybe this one truly had been conceived to bring the queen her happy ending. But it wouldn't last long anyway. It would disappear as soon as the curse would be broken.

So he merely rolled his eyes and turned towards Regina, choosing not to waste his time talking with a person with no real identity, someone just being a set of false memories. "Enjoy him while you can, dearie. We both know it won't last." He was out of the room as soon as the words left his lips and David didn't even get a chance to protest.

Instead he chose to follow Regina who had gone to sit on the examination table, probably tired of being on her feet for too long. Maybe she would have some answers to all the questions this confrontation had brought up. Although he wasn't sure she would give them to him. Still, he could try. "Why does he always belittle you like that?"

"That's just the way he is."

"A condescending prick?"

She chuckled, although she was still upset about the whole encounter. Today was supposed to be fun. She had seen her little girl for the first time, her little Clara. She would finally have her daughter after all this time, and Gold had to come and ruin it, reminding her that things would soon take a turn for the worse. Because now she was sure of it, Emma Swan was there to break her curse and there was no stopping it. She had learn to read between the lines and Gold hadn't even tried to be subtle about it anyway. If David hadn't been in the room, he would have been gloating about it.

"Seriously, though, what's the story between you two?"

Regina looked up into his eyes, mulling over her answer. She knew she couldn't tell him the truth. The question was: how much of it could she tell him? Not much unfortunately. However she was saved from answering when they heard a knock at the door, followed by Henry and Whale barging into the room, not even waiting for an answer.

As soon as he caught sight of her, Henry went to his mother and asked her what he had been cogitating on for the past half hour. "What did he want?"

Another question she couldn't truthfully answer to. And she knew that there was nothing she could say that Henry would like. So she just picked the easiest answer. "Nothing important, honey."

Her heart clenched at his hurt expression. He knew she was lying and she felt as if they had taken ten steps back because of it. David saw that and decided to intervene before she could hurt herself too much with her thought process. He hadn't gotten his answer either but it didn't matter. Today was a day for celebration and he wasn't going to let anybody forget it. "So, how do you feel about celebrating our first meeting with little Clara here-" He placed his hand on Regina's belly and grinned at the thought that his daughter was in there. "-by having a family night?"

Henry seemed to think it over for a while. "Can we have pizza?"

David looked at Regina for confirmation and saw her nod. Apparently she was also planning on using this idea to put Henry back into a celebrating mood. "Sure. You can even pick the game."

"The game?"

"Well, what would family night be without a game?"

The ten-year-old just nodded uncertainly. Actually he had no idea what family night looked like. Not that David knew any better though, he had just made it up. He just wanted to spend a nice evening with Regina, Henry and even their little Clara, even if she probably wouldn't participate much, and so a nice evening they were going to spend. It's not everyday that you see your little girl for the first time.


End file.
